Malik & Mawile: Hoenn Chronicles
by RENEGADE1357
Summary: While on a stroll, a pair of friends cross paths with an injured Mawile. After it's treated they decide to help it return home. Along the way the friends and the Pokemon unconsciously grow a bond to each other
1. Birthday

_((Pokemon... Pocket Monsters... Creatures that go around beating the living hell out of each other... I'm not sure what to call those things but I do know majority of this planet has dreamt of going around with our own litttle, whatever they are. So that's exactly what I'm gonna do. Like my One Piece story I shall be using my POV as if I was living in that world. Mainly cuz I strangley have a personal connection to this story. Don't ask me why cuz I couldn't tell ya if I knew myself. Well let's get started))_

Deep inside Granite Cave in Bewford Town, a little yellow Pokemon was walking on a ledge, trying to sneak it's way pass a group of sleeping Geodude and Onix to a pile of berries. This Pokemon was small, had red eyes, and a large jaw like appendage on the back of it's head. This Pokemon was known as Mawile. The rock-and-groud types had gathered a food supply for themselves and the steel-and-fairy type had wanted some for itself. Mawile had steadily worked it's way pass the sleeping Pokemon to it's edible destination

"Ma" the yellow Pokemon grinned

Mawile had picked up as much berries as it could and started making it's way towards the exit. After making it a few yards, the part of the ledge Mawile was walking on broke causing it to fall right onto one of the Onix's head. The rock snake quickly woke up, saw Mawile holding some of it's food, and went into an outrage causing the rest of the Pokemon to wake up and join in the rampage

"Ma! Mawile!" Mawile panicked and ran for the exit

The Onix and Geodude followed Mawile with a vengance. One of the Onix swung it's large tail and sent Mawile flying into a wall. A small group of Geodude used their Rollout attack and hit the yellow Pokemon multiple times. Mawile regained it's balance and jumped in the air

"Mawile!" Mawile spun and sent a sparkling vortex of air the rolling Geodude

((For those who aren't familar with Mawile's learnset, that was Fairy Wind))

The previous Geodude were blown away only for another group to take their spot. Mawile was surrounded and was forced to fight it's way out. Even while being thrown all over the cavern, Mawile focused on escaping. After a long period of battling, Mawile exited Granite Cave covered in injuries. Mawile somehow wondered it's way towards the dock and onto the closest boat to rest. Mawile crawled into an open crate and curled up. The second Mawile got into a comfortable position it quickly fell asleep, unaware that the boat it was on started to cast off

In a two story house in Littleroot Town, I was finally pulling myself out of my bed and walking downstairs

"Morning..." I yawned wishing I was still in bed

"Good morning Malik" my mother smirked flicking a little water from the sink in my face

A short girl walked up behind me and pattted me on the back. That girl was Brianna, my younger sister. She was only a year younger but she always tried to act like the older sibling

"There you are. You know it's almost noon right?" Brianna said

"Sorry. I didn't get to bed til real late" I told my sister

Brianna grinned "Talking to Taylor?"

"Shut up..." I grumbled

"What? Everyone knows you like each other" Brianna laughed

"No we dont. We're just old friends" I defended "Our families have been friends for a long time"

"Relax, I'm just teasing" my sister smiled "You do like her though"

"Haha... I'm going back to bed" I said walking towards the stairs

"Hold it young man" my mother said "Did you forget something?"

"Uhh... I love you?" I shrugged

"Happy birthday Malik!" my mom and Brianna cheered

I smiled "Oh yeah. My birthday"

"You forgot your own birthday?" Brianna laughed

"Laugh all you want" I said hugging my family "Love you guys"

"So... thirteen huh?" Mom said

"Thirteen" I smiled

"Big brother, when are you gonna go on a journey?" Brianna asked me "Most people usally start one at ten"

"You're one to talk. What about you?" I countered

"I can't" she mumbled

"Why not?" Mom asked

"Malik and I made a promise that he'd be the first one to start a journey" Brianna said

"Oh yeah I remember that. When we were little. I said I'd go first so I could soften up any obstacles" I laughed at my memories

"Brianna, you don't need your brother to do anything like that, do you?" Mom asked

"No but that was our agreement. Our promise. I'll stand by it." my sister smiled

"But I told you, I'm not really interested in that anymore" I said sitting on the stairs

"You're still on that? You seriously gotta grow outta that" Brianna demanded

I stood up and started to head upstairs "Whatever. I'm gonna get cleaned up and changed"

"Yeah, look nice for Taylor" Brianna taunted

"Shut it!" I yelled from the upper floor

About thirty minutes later I came back downstairs wearing a black jacket with a diagonal yellow stripe going across it, dark blue jean shorts, and white hat with a black Pokeball symbol on the bill

"Lookin' good" Brianna smirked

"So what's the plan today birthday boy?" Mom asked

"Oh nothing. Probably just hang out with the guys" I shrugged

"That's it? Malik it's your birthday" Mom said

"It's ok Mom. You never know what the day will hold" I smiled

"Hey! Malik!" a female voice called from outside

"I wonder who that can be" Brianna grinned

I opened the front door and saw a girl a little shorter than me with short light purple hair wearing a sky blue hoodie and white shorts. With the girl was a cheerful little Pokemon known as Minun

"Hey Taylor" I said letting my friend in

"Glad to see you made it out of bed" Taylor smirked taking a seat at the counter

"You're the one who keeps me up and I still gotta hear about it?" I asked

"Min!" Minus jumped on my shoulder and nuzzled my cheek

"I think Minun is trying to say Happy Birthday" Taylor smiled

I smiled and scratched the Minus's head "Thanks little buddy"

Taylor grabbed my arm and pulled me to the door

"Where are we going?" I asked

"To do something. It's your birthday come on!" Taylor said

"Alright already don't pull" I turned to my family "I'll be back later"

"Have fun" Mom smiled

"Not too much fun" Brianna smirked

"Will you st- Ah!" I gasped as I was yanked out the door leaving the women of my house laughing

Taylor and I walked down Routw 101 ann talked while Minun was playing with a group of Lillipup

"Malik when are you gonna go on a journey?" Taylor asked

"Geez, how many times am I gonna hear that question today?" I smirked

"I'm just saying. I've seen how you handle Pokemon. You naturally bond with them" Taylor said

"Yes... and no" I said "Yeah I like Pokemon sure, but I haven't been able to actually connect with any"

"What do you mean?" my friend asked

"When a trainer and their partner start a journey, they're suppose to be able to look at each other and think, 'You and I are going to the top.' It's not fair to any Pokemon if I don't think that way. It pretty much means... they're a tool. And I would never do that to anyone" I explained

"I see" Taylor smiled and put her hand on my shoulder "That's a nice way to think of that"

We kept talking and walking for a while. Without realizing it we ended up in Petalburg City

"Oops" Taylor giggled "Sorry I didn't mean to make us walk all the here"

I looked down the road and saw the Petalburg City Gym. I couldn't help but laugh "We walked two towns over? That's funny"

"Ma..." a weak voice whimpered

Taylor and I looked and saw a little yellow Pokemon with a jaw on the back of it's head trying to drink from the large pond. The Pokemon was covered with injuries

"What the..?" I gasped

The Pokemon struggled to get a drink and fell into the water

"Whoa!" I ran over to help it with Taylor right behind me

I ran into the water and held up the injured creature

"Is it ok?" Taylor asked concerned

"I... I don't know" I said

"Come on the Pokemon Center's right over there" Taylor said pointing to a building with a orange roof

"Right. Hang on little guy" I ran to the building as far as I could

((Well there you have it. I gotta say I'm kinda getting use to writing these things. I know I don't have a lot of stories at the moment but I'm pretty content. Also I really gotta start my Walking Dead. I have been putting that off for a while, but the undead aside, I really wanted to put my Pokemon story up as fast as I could. Tell me how you liked this little pilot. Questions, comments or concerns? Let me know. Thanks for reading!))


	2. Home

_((I am very content on how the first chapter came out. With that let's get another one going))_

 _((Quick recap: Malik and Taylor were walking around Petalburg City when they ran into severely hurt Mawile and rushed it to the nearest Pokémon Center))_

Taylor and I had gotten the Pokemon we had came across to Petalburg Pokemon Center and were waiting on Nurse Joy to return with any news. Taylor was sitting on the bench with Minun on her lap. I was pacing back and forth waiting on the nurse

"Are you ok?" Taylor asked

"I'm fine. I'm just tryna figure out how it got so injured like that" I answered

A soft ding went off and Nurse Joy came out pushing a cart with the Pokemon in question who had fell asleep

Taylor stood up holding Minun "Nurse Joy.."

"You did the right thing bringing Mawile here" the nurse said "It would've been more difficult to heal if it was out there much longer"

"Mawile? Is that it's name?" I asked

"Yes. Mawile is a steel-and-fairy type Pokemon. Aren't one of you it's trainers?" Nurse Joy asked

"No ma'am" Taylor said

"But we can take Mawile though. It must be exhausted. We can take care of it" I offered

"If you'd like to. It's no problem if you want to leave Mawile here" Joy said

"I don't mind" I smiled

I picked up the sleeping Mawile and we went back to my house in Littleroot Town. I explained to my mother and sister that i wanted to make sure Mawile was ok before we let it go. She agreed and I put Mawile in my bed to finish resting

"I hope Mawile's ok..." Taylor said concerned

"I've never seen a Mawile before" Brianna said

"Me neither. It's kinda cool looking actually" I said

"I think it looks kinda creepy..." Brianna confessed "I mean, what's with that huge jaw thing anyway?"

"I think she's cute" Mom smiled

I tilted my head "She? It's a girl? How do you know?"

"A mother can tell" my mom smirked

"I'll take you word on it" I chuckled

Soft footsteps were coming down the stairs slowly and Mawile came into view

"Hey Mawile" I said "How are you feeling?"

Mawile ignored my question and headed for the door

"Hold on. Are you hungry?" Mom asked

That seem to grab Mawile's attention because it suddenly stopped

"Don't be shy. We wont bite" my mother smiled

Mawile slowly walked up and jumped onto the counter where Minun offered it some of it's food. Mawile seemed unsure what to do. As if it thought we were being too nice in some way. Mawile took Minun's kind offer and ate a piece of the food. Mawile smiled a little and started eating faster. It even almost choked at one point

I laughed "You don't have to rush there's plenty more"

"Hey are you a girl?" Taylor asked like it was no big deal

Mawile nodded and went back to eating

"Told you" Mom smirked

"Mawile where are you from?" Taylor asked

The Pokemon ignored my friend's question and focused on her food

"Well the main places Mawile can be found are Granite Cave and the Cave of Origin" my mom pointed out

"So you're from on of those places?" Taylor smiled

"Granite Cave... That's in Dewford Town right? That's the closest" I said

Mawile seemed to be getting upset about the conversation because she quickly stood up and bolted for the door

"Hey wait!" I said

The door opened and Mawile crashed into a boy who was walking in. This boy was my height, he had the same shade of light purple hair color as Taylor and was wearing a red hoodie, and black shorts. This boy was Tyler, Taylor's twin brother and my best friend since childhood. A Pokemon that looked like Minun followed Tyler inside, plus this little creature was known as Plusle

"Ty" I said standing up

"Bro" Taylor ran up and hugged him "You're back"

"Taylor I was only gone for a few hours to run an errand for Professor Birch" Tyler hugged back and laughed

"But I missed you" Taylor pouted

Tyler sighed and looked at me "Oh yeah, happy birthday dude"

I high-fived him "Thanks Ty"

Tyler looked down at our Pokemon guest and kneeled to her level "You're a new face"

"This is Mawile. We just met her today" Taylor smiled

"Mawile huh? Never seen one of you before" Tyler said

"Yeah line starts over here" Brianna said making herself known

"Well I'm Tyler. Nice to meet you" my friend smiled

Mawile ignored him and walked outside. I followed

"Hold up. Where are you going?" I asked "Are you trying to go home?"

"Wile" Mawile nodded

"Well if you're that anxious on getting home, let me help you. It's dangerous to go by yourself and I don't want you hurt again"

Mawile ignored me for a second then turned around to look me in the eye

"Mawile?" I asked

Mawile winked and stuck out her tongue

"Uhh... What's that supossed to mean?"

I saw a smirk cross Mawile's face as she ran onto Route 101

((Note: Mawile has quite the naughty nature. Just thought I'd let you know))

I walked back inside and saw Plusle and Minun play wrestling with each other. I sat on the cough and everyone asked where Mawile had gone. I explained that Mawile wanted to go on ahead by herself. Or at least that's what I got from her response to my offer

"I guess Mawile didn't want to be friends" Taylor frowned

I stood up "No"

"No what?" Brianna asked

"I'll never forgive myself if Mawile got hurt. I'm going after her. I'll make sure she gets back to Dewford Town safely" I said

Taylor stood next to me and smiled "Alright lets go"

"You're coming?" I asked

"Of course we are" Tyler added

"We?" I said confused "Guys it's no big deal I can do this myself"

"You said you'd never forgive yourself if Mawile got hurt? Well we feel the same way" Taylor blushed slightly

"Huh... Well alright!" I grinned "Let's go!"

The twins ran out with their Pokemon but I paused at the door and looked at my mom

"Something wrong?" my mother asked

"Nothing" I answered "But I told you something might happen today"

My mom and sister started laughing and ran out cathing up to the twins on Route 101

"Which way did Mawile go?" Tyler asked

"This way come on!" I said taking the lead in the forest

((Next chapter we just gotta get some battles in seriously. But I'll take care of it. Leave some feedback. Questions, comments or concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))


	3. Stories

_((Quick recap: Malik, Taylor, and Tyler, accompanied by Plusle and Minun, decided to help Mawile return to Dewford Town despite what she wanted))_

The twins and their Pokemon followed me into the forest as we kept an eye out for our steel-and-fairy type friend

"Where could have Mawile gone off to so quickly?" Taylor wondered "We didn't leave that much later than her"

"Yeah, Mawile's pretty fast huh?" Tyler smirked

"I just hope she's ok" I mumbled

"What was that?" Taylor asked

"N-nothing!" i said

Mawile had gotten a decent headstart on us and was now on Route 102 and was looking at a group of Poochyena barking at each other. A Mightyena, possilby the parent, was standing by cleary making sure they didn't hurt each other. Mawile was standing behind a tree to hide herself then she noticed the dark type canines had a little pile of food

Mawile grinned "Ma..."

Mightyena popped up and growled when Mawile stepped out from behind the tree. The Poochyena surrounded her and began growling and barking. Mawile stood there shaking and suddenly started crying. The puppies clearly got nervous and backed off while the the bigger dog stared Mawile down. Mawile noticed one of the Poochyena was sniffing her and she quickly snapped her jaw to scare it off. Showing it was clearly angry at Mawile's actions, Mighyena chared at her. Mawile grinned and used her Fairy Wind attack knowing it would effective on the dark type. Mightyena flew only to become angrier. The puppies and thier parent began attacking Mawile and she was doing her best to avade their strikes but two of the Poochyena wer able to land a couple Bite attacks on Mawile's leg and arm causing her to fall down

"Wile..." she tried to push off the Pokemon that had suddenly jumped on top of her

"Spark let's go!" two voices called out

Both Plusle and Minun suddenly flew in using their Spark attacks making the Pokemon scatter. Taylor and Tyler ran up revealing they were the ones who gave the order the two little electric types

"Looks like we made it in time" Tyler said catching his breath

"Thank goodness" Taylor smiled "Good job you two"

Plusle and Minun smiled at their acknowledgement

"Well that wasn't too hard now was it?" I smirked as I walked next to Mawile "I bet you wanted that food over there right? You don't have to steal you know"

Mawile stood up and looked away from me "Mawile..."

"Let me guess. You could've handled it without us right?" I asked

Mawile put on a pouty face and didn't respond

"I'll take that as a yes" I smiled

Mawile growled and ran off and the Mightyena followed her

"Hey!" I chased after the two Pokemon

"Malik be careful!" Taylor called out as she and her brother stayed to deal with the enraged Poochyena

"Let's do this Tay!" Tyler said getting ready for a battle

All the puppies attacked at once

"Thunder Wave!" both twins called out

Plusle and Minun sent out a surge of electricity causing the Poochyena to become paralysed

"Helping Hand!" Taylor said

"Swift!" Tyler added

Energy surrounded Minun and was passed on to Plusle. Plusle than began firing stars at the paralysed pooches

((Paralysed pooches. Yeah I said it))

"Let's keep it up" the twins said

I had finally caught up to Mawile and Mightyena as they were battling in a field. Mawile tried to deliver a Bite attack but the dog just dodged it and hammered Mawile with Take Down causing her to skid back

"Bite..." I mumbled

Mawile began spinning and sent a sparkling vortex and the dark type but it just barely dodged it

I kept watching the battle "Fairy Wind..."

Mawile started running and disappeared. She reappeared on the side of Mightyena and slammed into it

"Feint Attack..."

Mightyena regained it's balance, bit down on Mawile's arm and threw to the side

I came out and ran to her "Mawile!"

Mawile ignored me and went back to the fight only to get thrown back

"Mawile you can't win like that. You're just trying to make the strongest hit. That won't accomplish anything. Let me help" I told the steel-and-fairy type

It was obvious she was thinking about it but refused in the end then went to fighting

"Three... two... one..." I counted down

Mawile came sliding back towards me on her back with another pouty face as soon as I hit one

"Want my help now?" I asked

She rolled her eyes and stood up. Mawile slowly looked up at me and nodded

"Alright then" I looked at Mightyena "Mawile, let's get started! In the air!"

"Mawile!" she jumped in the air

Mightyena jumped after her

"Fairy Wind!" I instructed

"Wile!" Mawile spun and sending the current at our opponent

The dog got blasted back to the ground. It got back up and charged back at us

"Mawile don't move" I said

Mawile looked like she was about to disobey but followed my instructions. Mightyena was a second from being right on top of her

"Now, Feint Attack!"

Mawile disappeared and kicked Mightyena from above causing it to crash down. Just then, the twins and their Pokemon had walked up and were watching our battle from the bushes. Mightyena was running around trying to catch Mawile but she was following my commands and was maneuvering around the strikes

"Look at those two" Tyler said

"They're in perfect sync" Taylor smiled

"Bite!" I called out

"Ma!" Mawile cried out as she bit the angered dog and threw it down hard

Mightyena slowly stood up and ran off

"Alright!" I cheered

"Mawile..." Mawile was clearly still trying to process how well we worked together

"That was awesome!" the twins cheered as they made themselves known

"You guys were watching?" I asked

"Not for that long sadly. How'd you two end up working together?" Tyler questioned

"It just happened" I smiled and kneeled down "So Mawile, ready to take me up on my offer? We can take you back home safely. All you have to do is ask"

Mawile walked up and started pulling me by my shorts towards Petalburg City

"I guess that's a yes" I joked

"Hold on it's getting late" Tyler said looking at the sun as it was going down "Let's camp here for the night and go to Dewford Town tomorrow"

"Sounds like a plan" Taylor agreed

Mawile seemed anxious to get moving but the second Tyler mentioned a cooked meal she seemed okay with staying. The twins were awesome chefs. They use to compete to find out who was best between them with myself as the judge. I can't even count how many times those two stuffed me into a food coma. Just like back then, they made an amazing dinner and filled everyone's appetite. After dinner we talked for a while and before long we decided to call it a night. Luckily from all our family camping trips, and Mawile living in a cave, we were kinda use to sleeping under the stars so it was no issue getting to sleep. After about an hour, Mawile had woken up and looked around then finally noticed I wasn't there

The little Pokemon wondered around and found me sitting in a small field staring at the night sky "Mawile?"

I looked behind me and saw my new Pokemon friend "Oh hey Mawile. Sorry, did I wake you?"

She shook her head and took a seat next to me "Wile?"

I lied on my back "You're probably wondering what I'm doing huh? Well whenever we went camping, dad and I would wait til everyone went to sleep then we'd sneak off and look at the stars. He told me that stars tell stories so that's what we did. Look at the stars, create characters, a backstory and an adventure to go on. My characters were always the strongest Pokemon trainers ever"

"Mawile..." she lied next to me

"Apart of me always wanted to go on a journey but I could never find partner that meant something to me. Maybe I could find a Pokemon like you to travel with one day. What do you think?" I looked over at Mawile and saw that she fell asleep "Come on buddy. Let's get to bed"

I picked the sleeping Pokemon and walked back to the campsite

((Questions, comments or concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))


	4. Teamwork

_((Sorry it's been a while since I've posted anything. Got a lot of shuff going on that really pulled me to the side for a while. But I'm free for a while so might as well write a chapter or two right?))_

 _((Quick recap: Mawile agreed to let Malik and the twins accompany her back to Dewford Town. Along the way, Malik shared a little bit of his past with his new Pokemon friend))_

Taylor sturred awake, stretched her arms and yawned. She looked to her side and saw Minun doing the same

"Good morning" Taylor smiled

"Min" her partner smiled back

Taylor and her Pokemon crawled out of her tent and did some more stretches

"Morning" Tyler said making breakfast

"Plus" Tyler's partner was setting up the table

"Morning. Malik still in his tent?" Taylor asked

"Surprised?" Taylor smirked

Taylor was looking around the campsite like something was missing "Not really but..."

"What's wrong?"

"Mawile. I don't see her" Taylor pointed out

"Well go wake up Malik and ask him" the male twin said

"Kay" Taylor walked over to my tent and poked her head in "Hey Malik do you know where... Awwww"

"What?" Tyler asked

Taylor gestured her brother over. They both looked inside to the sight of Mawile and I fast asleep right next to each other

"Wow" Tyler chuckled

"Don't be like that. I think it's cute" Taylor smiled

Taylor shook me "Wake up Sleeping Beauty, time for breakfast!"

I groaned and sat up "Hey guys..."

Mawile did the same "Ma..."

"I know you we're the twins here but you two look more alike than we do" Tyler laughed and left the tent

"Come on you two. The food will get cold" Taylor said

Mawile walked out and sat on the ground. I walked over to the river and dunked my head in the water

"Mawile?" Mawile wondered at my actions

Taylor was walking over with some fruit "Malik cut it out"

I came up and shook the water off my head. Taylor blushed slightly as the drops of water flew threw the air

"I can't help it. It's a nice way to wake up. To me at least" I said still shaking my head, I looked at Taylor "Alright breakfast"

Taylor's face was still a little red and she was blocking out any sound

"Taylor... Taylor... Taylor..." I snapped my fingers in her face "Hey Taylor!"

The girl came back to reality "Y-yes?"

I held out my hand "Can I have some?"

"Uhh yeah sure" she gave me a couple berries

I shared some of it with the Pokemon and sat against a tree. After a couple minutes Tyler announced that he was done with our pancake breakfast. We all finished our meal aand got bqck on the road

"So we gotta catch a ferry to Dewford Town?" I asked

"That's right. Route 105" Tyler answered "But technically we're just going to Granite Cave. To get to Dewford Town we'd have to take Route 106 as well"

"I get it. That way we can just take the ferry there, drop off Mawile and come back. Easy" I said

Nobody noticed but Mawile seemed a little upset at my comment. Like she was sad or angry how easy it was for us to let go of her. We walked for a little while longer until we saw a house by the shore

"You think someone there could help us?" Taylor asked

"Let's find out" I said as I knocked on the door

An old man with a beard came to the door "Hello?"

"Hello sir. We were hoping you could help us get to Dewford Town" Taylor said politely

"Granite Cave to be specific" I added

"Dewford Town eh? Luckily for you I was just about to go there myself on my boat" the old man said

"Awesome. So can we get a ride with you?" Tyler asked

"Perhaps. But first, are the three of you Pokemon trainers by any chance?" the man asked us

"These two are. Me, not exactly" I said

"Well how about a battle in exchange for a ride?" he offered

"Deal" the twins said in unison

I stepped up "Hold it. I got this one"

"You? I thought you said you weren't a trainer" the man said

I smirked at the old man "I said not exactly. What do you say Mawile? Wanna team up again?"

Mawile smiled "Ma"

"So you're my opponent? Okay" the man said

We stood by the water and got ready. Taylor sat off to the side with Plusle and Minun while her brother stood in between the man and myself

"I'll referee" Tyler said "This will be a one-on-one Pokemon battle between Malik and... I'm sorry we didn't catch your name"

"You can call me Mr. Briney" the man said

Tyler nodded "Got it. This will be a one-on-one Pokemon battle between Malik and Mr. Briney! The battle will be over when either side is unable to continue! Bring out your Pokemon!"

"You ready Mawile?" I asked

She ran onto the field "Mawile!"

Mr. Briney pointed to the sky "Peeko!"

"Peeko?" Taylor questioned "I've never heard of that Pokemon"

A Wingull flew down from the sky and onto the field

"This is my partner, Peeko" Mr. Briney pointed out

"It's a Wingull? Alright. Let's go!" I smiled

"Battle begin!" Tyler called out

" You can have the first move!" Mr. Briney annouced

"You asked for it! Mawile, Fairy Wind!" I ordered

"Wile!" Mawile spun and sent the sparkling vortex at Peeko

"Peeko, Quick Attack!" Mr. Briney yelled

"Win!" Peeko spread out his wings and dodged the attack at superspeed

"Supersonic!" Mr. Briney called out

"Gull" Peeko sent out a type of echo that hit Mawile

"Mawile are you ok?" I asked

Mawile rocked back and forth "Ma...wile..."

"She's confused. Supersonic is a pretty helpful move in battle" Taylor said

"Min"

"Plus"

"Come on Mawile you got this! Use Bite!" I yelled

Mawile didn't respond and kept teetering around

"Water Pulse!" Mr. Briney told his partner

A small sphere of water appeared in front of Peeko and shot foward

"Mawile you gotta move!" I instructed

Right after my command the sphere nailed Mawile and exploded into water causing her to fly back into the water. Mawile came back up and shook her head

"Are you ok?" I asked

"Mawile" Mawile nodded and ran back onto the field

"I guess that Water Pulse knocked some sense into her" Taylor smiled

"Mawile freeze right there" I told her

Mawile obliged

"Use Quick Attack and Wing Attack together!" Mr. Briney yelled

"Gull!" Peeko's wings glowed and he flew towards Mawile at highspeed

"That's fast" I looked at the water "Mawile take a dip"

Mawile got grazed by Peeko's attack and managed to get into the water and disappear

"Why would you..." Mr. Briney wondered "Peeko, Water Pulse!"

"Wing!" Peeko shot the water but Mawile didn't reappear

"Multiple Water Pulse!" Mr. Briney yelled

"Wingull!" blasted a bunch of water spheres

Each blast made an explosion in the water

I smirked "Thanks for the cover"

"Huh?" Mr. Briney seemed to be thrown off by my comment

"Mawile Feint Attack!" I called out

Mawile appeared over Peeko and knocked it down hard

"Peeko!" Briney gasped

"Aim at the ground and use Fairy Wind!" I instructed

Mawile obeyed and used Fairy Wind to create a large dust cloud. Peeko was caught up in the cloud and was unable to counter

"Peeko use Wing Attack!" Mr. Briney yelled

"Too late! Mawile use Bite!"

Mawile came up from behind Peeko and dug her giant teeth in one of his wings then she slammed him down

"Peeko!" Mr. Briney cried out

The dust cleared and revealed Peeko had fainted

"Peeko is unable to battle! Malik and Mawile win!" Tyler annouced

"Alright!" I cheered

Mawile just smirked

Mr. Briney picked up his partner "Are you okay Peeko?"

"Wing..." Peeko said softly

"Well you won fair and square. Next stop, Dewford Town"

After we got settled, we all got on Mr. Briney's boat and set sail. Mr. Briney was steering, Peeko flew over the boat, the twins were looking out to the sea and I was standing at the front of the ship. About halfway there Mawile walked up next to me

"You know Mawile... I really gotta thank you" I said

"Mawile?" she wondered

"This little adventure showed me that Pokemon journeys are awesome. I actuaclly wanna go on one now. Now all I have to do is get a starter Pokemon from the professor. I don't know who I can possibly choose. Whoever it is I hope they're cool like you" I smiled

Mawile stayed silent and looked foward

"We're coming up on Granite Cave!" Mr. Briney called out

"That works perfectly" Tyler said back

The boat came to a stop and we all hopped off

"I'll be right here when you get back so take your time" Briney said

"Thank you" we all said

We started walking until we noticed Mawile wasn't with us. She was just standing on the boat

"Mawile you coming?" I asked

Mawile hesitated and joined us. We made our way to Granite Cave

 _((Another chapter come and gone. Sunrise, sunset. Questions, commets and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	5. Partners

_((Quick Recap: The group reached Granite Cave and prepare to say goodbye to Mawile))_

The twins, Mawile and I walked up to the cave

"So this is it" Taylor frowned

"Yeah" Tyler nodded

I was happy I was able to help Mawile get home safely but I was sad I had to say goodbye to her. But I didn't want Mawile to see me get upset about her leaving so I kept a smile on my face

Mawile stepped up to the cave and turned to us

"Guess this is goodbye Mawile. Don't get into any trouble again okay?" I smiled

Mawile just glared at me

"I'm planning to start my own journey soon so maybe I'll see you again"

Mawile prushed me off and started walking into the cave

"I get it if you don't like me..." I tear slid down my smiling face "But you'll always my friend"

Mawile stopped right there but didn't turn around

I turned around "You take care of yourself Mawile. I hope I see you again one day"

The twins and I headed back to the boat. Because Mawile didn't face us in the end nobody saw the tears pouring out her eyes. Just like the trip to Granite Cave, the trip back home took a while. I was welcomed home by my mother and little sister. I explained that we got Mawile got home without much problem and they had to part ways. My family was upset to see Mawile go just like I was

"So you decided to go on journey?" Mom asked

"Yeah. I already talked to Professor Birch. He said come see him first thing tomorrow and he'd send me on my way" I answered

"Tomorrow? Why not today?" Brianna asked

"I don't know why but... I just wanna be alone for a while" I said heading up the stairs "I'll see you in the morning. Night"

"Night..." both females said

"He knows it's like three o'clock right?" Brianna asked our mother

The next day I got dressed in my usual style of clothes and headed towards the Birch's lab with the twins and Brianna

"For a boy about to start his own Pokemon journey you don't look very excited" my sister said

"I don't know Bri... Maybe this is a mistake" I shrugged

"Don't be like that. This is a big step for you. Trust me you'll love it" Taylor said trying to encourage me

"I trust you" I told her with a slight smile

We all went inside and Birch explained the basics. Nothing we didn't already know but we didn't want to be rude. After he let out three Pokemon, the Wood Gecko Pokemon Treeko, the Mud Fish Pokemon Mudkid, and the Chick Pokemon Torchic

"Go ahead and choose your starter Pokemon Malik" Professor Birch smiled

I kneeled down and looked at my choices but I didn't know which one to choose. I didn't know why but it felt like none of them were meant for me. But I came here for a partner so had to choose one of them

"I guess... I'll choose..." I mumbled

I was about to pick one of them but the door slammed open and stopped me

"What?!" everyone gasped

Standing at the door was a Mawile that looked exhausted, like it just ran a marathon

"A Mawile?" Birch wondered

I walked up to the Pokemon "Are you..."

Mawile smiled slightly, winked and stuck her tongue out

"It is you!" I smiled

"Mawile what are you doing here?" Tyler asked

"Ma!" Mawile jumped in my arms and smiled at me

"I... I don't understand" I stuttered

"Malik do you know this Mawile?" Birch asked me with a smile

"Yeah" I answered "We helped it get back home the other day. I have no idea why she came back"

"Looks to me like Mawile has chosen you" the professor said

"Chosen me? For what?" I asked

"For a trainer" Birch laughed "Whatever you did Mawile obviously respected it. So much that Mawile wants to accompany you on your journey. This isn't the first time something like this has happened and it won't be the last"

I looked at Mawile and put her down "Is that true Mawile? Do you want to come with me? And be my partner?"

She grinned and nodded "Mawile!"

I turned back to the professor "I can do that right?"

He held out a Pokeball "Of course but you'll have to make it official"

I took the Pokeball and held it up to Mawile "Mawile... You and I are going to the top"

Mawile placed her hand on the Pokeball and got sucked inside. The ball shook and then stopped with a ding and a quick flash of sparkles

"Alright! I got Mawile!" I cheered

"I get how Mawile got here the first time but this is the first time I've a Pokemon come all this way for a person who wasn't even it's trainer" Tyler smiled "You really have some partner there Malik"

"Thanks. I- Huh?!" I gasped when the ball popped open and Mawile came out on her own "Mawile? What's wrong?"

Mawile was shaking like she had just been threw something horrible

"I don't think Mawile likes being in her Pokeball" Taylor concluded

"Alright you can stay out with me" I smiled

Mawile seemed to feel better with that comment. After we got settled, Professor Birch gave me a Pokedex and a set of Pokeballs. I thanked Birch and headed home to deliver the news to my mom

"Welcome to the family Mawile" Mom smiled

"Ma!" my partner nodded

"So what's the plan?" Brianna asked

"What else? Challenge the gyms and compete in the Hoenn League" I answered

"Well it's obvious adventure follows you so you can count me in" Tyler smirked

"If he gets to go I'm going too!" Taylor demanded

"Alright alright" I laughed "If you're all so excited then let's get a move on"

"Yeah!" the twins cheered

Without hesitastion the twins and I ran outside with Mawile, Plusle and Minun right behind us

"Be careful out there!" Mom shouted

"Let em have it Malik!" Brianna yelled

"Well I guess you're next huh?" Mom asked Brianna

"Not today but soon" she smiled

My team had already passed both Route 101 and Oldale Town so now we were running threw Route 102 with determination

"I take it you already know the drill" Tyler smirked

"You already know you can't take on the whole Hoenn League with just Mawile right?" Taylor asked

"Of course!" I smiled

Just like that a Seedot crossed our path and took off into the forest

"Hey wait!" I yelled as Mawile and I ran after it

"Malik!" Taylor gasped and chased after me

"This whole journey thing sure has him excited" Tyler laughed "Hey wait for me!"

 _((I love when things work out. Malik and Mawile really do make a good team. Questions, comments, and concerns and expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	6. First Catch

_((Quick Recap: Even after being returned to Granite Cave, Mawile made her way back to Littleroot Town and Malik. Soon after Malik happily welcomed Mawile to the family. Now Malik, Mawile, Taylor, Tyler, Plusle, and Minun are traveling around Hoenn so Malik can compete in the Hoenn League))_

 _((Also, I would just like to thank the fans of this story. I just saw it had 300 views. I know that isn't a lot like that but I'm proud of it. So thank you again))_

I ran into a field trying to catch my breath "Where'd it go?"

"Malik!" Tyler ran up and starting breathing hard "What was that? Why'd you run off like that?"

"I wanted to catch that Seedot" I smiled

"Last week you didn't want any Pokemon, now you want them all?" Tyler smirked

I shrugged "What can I say? Gotta catch em all"

" _I feel like I've heard that somewhere before..._ " Tyler thought

I looked behind Tyler "Hey where's Taylor?"

"She's right..." Tyler turned around but didn't see his sister "Oh boy..."

"Now that I think about it... where's Mawile?" I wondered

"And Plusle and Minun?" Tyler added

"Oops..." I gulped

In a different part of the forest Taylor was walking around looking for us

"Tyler! Malik! Where are you!" Taylor shouted "We just left how are we already scattered?"

A bush started shaking

"Hello?" she asked

The Seedot from earlier jumped out

"Oh it's just you. You wouldn't happen to know where my brother and my friends are would you?" Taylor asked politely

Seedot jumped up and headbutted her away

"Ah!" Taylor yelped and falling to the ground "All you had to say was no..."

Seedot got spooked by something and ran off

"Hm? What got into him?" Taylor asked herself

A large group of Taillow flew from the trees and attacked Taylor. She screamed and ran form them. Back at Route 102 Tyler and I were looking for any sign of his sister

"You just had to chase the Seedot" Tyler shamed me

I dropped my head in shame "Sorry..."

"It's not your fault" Tyler sighed "Don't tell her I told you but Taylor has a horrible sense of direction. So when she was chasing after you she must've made a wrong turn somewhere"

"I remember passing a creek with Mawile and Taylor was still behind me because I remember her complaining about not wanting to get her shoes all muddy" I said

Tyler nodded "She must've gone to to find another way around and got lost. But that still doesn't explain what happened to our Pokemon"

"Mawile and the others must've noticed when she disappered and went to go find her. You know, considering they're not with her" I concluded

We heard a scream coming not too far away

"What was that?" I asked

"Taylor. She sounds close" Tyler said

"Let's go!"

We ran in the direction the scream came from and hit hill

"Hey! Taylor!" I yelled hoping for a responce

"She's gotta be around here somewhere..." Tyler mumbled

"Hey Tyler would you recognize so easily?" I asked

"I'm surprised you didn't. Remember our camping trip a few years back? That one when Taylor was the alarm clock?" Tyler smirked

"Oh yeah! When Taylor woke up and came face-to-face with like six Wurmple?" I laughed

A louder scream came from over the hill

"That sounds really close" I smiled "It's Taylor"

"So is whatever's chasing her..." Tyler said

Taylor came into view running over the hill with the heard of Taillow right behind her. Tyler and I followed Taylor's lead and took off as fast as we could

"Why are they so mad?!" Tyler panicked

"We leave you alone for five minutes and you tick off a whole flock?! Nice one Taylor!" I yelled

"I didn't do anything they attacked me!" Taylor yelled back

"Taillow are territorial! You must've wandered onto their area!" Tyler said

The Taillow began diving at our heads. We did our best to evade them but we were at a disadvantage. In another part of the forest Mawile was walking and pulling Plusle and Minun along with her

"Plus..." "Min..." the two Cheering Pokemon whimpered

"Mawile!" the Deceiver Pokemon yelled

Mawile was angry at the two for getting her separated form her trainer. After walking for a short while, just like with Taylor, Seedot crossed their path but it was freaking out. Mawile walked up to it and asked if it was alright. Seedot explained that Taylor was getting attacked by Taillow but lost sight of her soon after. Mawile thanked the little Acorn Pokemon for the information and ran off with Plusle and Minun to help. Seedot stood there for a minute and took off in the same direction. Back with my group we were just being cornered by the Taillow

"Our first day out and we go out like this..." Tyler said

Taylor was hiding behind me and she reached around and pulled my cheek "I blame you!"

Suddenly a strong gust of sparkling air gave us an opportunity to escape. Plusle and MInun jumped to their trainers while Mawile ran up ready to battle the Taillow

"Thanks for the save Partner" I said standing next to Mawile and looking at the flock "I don't know where to start"

Seedot stood on the other side of me "Dot!"

"Hey. Sorry about chasing you eariler" I said "Wanna help us out?"

"Seedot" the Pokemon nodded

"Alright! Mawile use Fairy Wind!" I commanded

"Wile!" spun and sent the current at a few of them but didn't make much of a dent

"Let us help!" Tyler said running up "Plusle use Spark!"

"You too Minun!" Taylor announced

Plusle and Minun went flying but only hit a couple of them. Some Taillow use Quick Attack on Seedot

"Seedot! Are you okay?" I asked concerned

There was energy surrounding Seedot. Some more Taillow flew pass me and hit Seedot with Peck. For some reason everytime Seedot got hit the energy got bigger

"I think Seedot is using Bide" Tyler said

"What's Bide?" I asked

"It's like using your opponents power against them. And the more hits you take the stronger the attack" Tyler explained

"Seedot's taking a lot of damage. We gotta the Taillow in one spot so Bide can hit. We may have one shot" I said

"How are we supposed to do that?" Taylor asked

"Hmm..." I hummed taking a look around "I have an idea"

"Let's hear it" Tyler said

"We're gonna corral them. Taylor you take Minun and run to the end of the path. Tyler you take Plusle and go the other way. Use their electricity to force them in Mawile's direction. Mawile, you stand in the middle right over ther. When the Taillow are over you use Fairy Wind as much as you can but spend in the opposite direction than you normally do" I instructed

Mawile gave me a confusing look

"What'll that do?" Taylor asked

"Just trust me. Once Mawile has them Seedot will take care of the rest" I smiled

Everyone nodded and followed my instructions. The twins to opposite ends of the path and had Plusle and Minun use Thunder Wave to send them back towards Mawile. Once they got close enough she used Fairy Wind but spun in the opposing direction than she normally does causing the Taillow to get sucked inside of it and trapped in the sparkling vortex

"Whoa!" the twins gasped

"Now Seedot use Bide!" I yelled

Seedot fired a huge laser and blasted every last Taillow, knocking them all out

"That was amazing!" Taylor cheered

"I've never seen Fairy Wind used like that" Tyler commented

"Yeah how'd you know it'd do that?" Taylor asked

"I noticed that when Mawile uses that move she only spins one way. So I thought if she spun in the opposite direction it'd create a vaccum and trap them. Leaving Seedot with Bide. But even I wasn't expecting a blast like that" I explained

"Wile" Mawile grinned

I kneeled down to Seedot's level "Thanks for the help. You really pack a bunch don't you? How would you like to come along with me?"

"Malik you're supposed to battle the Pokemon you want to catch" Tyler said

"Why battle the Pokemon that just helped us? Besides after all this I think I owe Seedot a civilized invitation at least" I countered

Seedot nodded to my offer. I smiled and held out a Pokeball. Seedot tapped the ball and went inside it, getting caught

"Welcome to the family!" I smiled

"Malik you really are something else" Tyler smirked

"Congratulations Malik" Taylor smiled

"Check it out Mawile. The first member of our new family" I said holding the Pokeball to my partner

Mawile rubbed the ball and smiled "Mawile"

"Oh yeah I almost forgot. Mawile how'd you get lost? You went looking for Taylor right?" I asked

Mawile tilted her head "Mawile?"

"When we got separated. Weren't you looking for Taylor?" I asked again

Mawile shook her head and pointed to Plusle and Minun. Mawile tried to explain that when we were running threw the forest the two Cheering Pokemon started running in the wrong direction and she went to bring them back but since she couldn't speak it all sounded like gibberish to us humans

"You catch any of that?" I asked the twins

They shook their heads. Mawile sighed

"Whatever. We're back togather now so it's cool" I let Seedot out of it's Pokeball "And we got a new friend. Seedot, my name's Malik. These are my friends Taylor, Tyler, Plusle, and Minun. And that's my partner Mawile. You're apart of our family now"

Mawile already seemd to be acquainted with Seedot so that made things easier

"Okay" I smiled "Next stop, the Petalburg City gym!"

 _((Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	7. Twins

_((I know it's been a while. Just dealing with some stuff. School, the fam, the life. Y'all know how it is. But I won't waste your time complaining so... Yeah. It is what it is))_

 _((Quick Recap: Malik made his first catch, Seedot. Now the team is making their way towards Petalburg City))_

It wasn't even sunrise yet and the twins were making breakfast. Nothing special, mainly fruit

"Tyler, Malik isn't in his tent" Taylor said worried

"He got up a little early. He said he wanted to do a little training before his gym match" Tyler explained

"Well that makes sense. I never looked into the Petalburg Gym. I wonder what type they use" Taylor wondered

"Don't ask me. All I know is the Gym Leader's name. Some guy named Norman if I'm not mistaken" Tyler said

"Well it doesn't matter. Malik will win" Taylor smiled

Tyler finished making breakfast and placed it on the table

"Well food's done" Tyler smiled "Now we're just one Malik short"

"One Mawile too. Oh and one Seedot" Taylor added

"Then let's go find them" Tyler said

The twins and their partners went looking for me and my team but they came up empty handed. After searching a little while longer they made their way back to the campsite

"Geez... I knew he was going to train but I didn't know he'd disappear to do it" Tyler groaned

"Do you think they're okay?" Taylor asked

"I'm sure they're fine. Malik probably thought if he got far enough away he wouldn't disturb us with his training" Tyler concluded "We're no help if we don't have any energy. I say we get a little breakfast, wait a little while and try again"

"I guess you're right" Taylor smiled "I am kinda hungry too"

"No kidding..." Tyler said walking up to the messy but surprisingly foodless table "Seriously Tay, how hungry were you?"

"Me?" Taylor gasped "I didn't eat all that!"

Tyler laughed at his sister "I'm just teasing. But something ate it all. Question's what"

Suddenly an Oran Berry rolled out from the bushes, which caught the twins attention. Following the berry was a small Pokemon that looked like it had a green bowl haircut with pink attachments on it. This little creature was known as Ralts. Ralts quickly grabbed the berry and took off

"A Ralts? Hey!" Tyler yelled realizing that was their fruit and chasing after it "Food thief!"

"Wait for me!" Taylor pleaded chasing after him

"Plus!" "Min!" their partners ran with them

Tyler ran after Ralts and followed it to a large hollowed out tree. He kept a distance to keep Ralts from noticing him

Taylor ran up on her brother and looked over his shoulder "What's going on?"

"Ralts ran in there" Tyler whispered

The twins walked up to tree and peeked inside. Inside was another Ralts but it looked different. It's white body had a pinkish tone to it, where it should've been green it was light blue, and where it should've been pink it was orange

"What's up with that Ralts?" Tyler asked

"I don't know. I've never seen a Ralts that looked like that before" Taylor whispered

The shiny Ralts was laying on a bed of leaves and was breathing very hard. The first Ralts was trying to get the second one to eat the berries it stole but it wouldn't. After paying attention to the two Pokemon the twins realized that the shiny Ralts was sick and it's friend was trying to help it keep it's strength up by eating. On the ground were scraps of what was left of the twins' breakfast

Taylor walked inside the tree "May I help?"

The first Ralts grew angry for Taylor following it and went to defend it's sick friend

"Easy little guy. We're not here to hurt you" Tyler said making himself known "Let us help. Please?"

It took a minute but the Pokemon agreed to let them help. Taylor sat on the ground and put the sick Ralts in her lap

"She's burning up" Taylor said

"She?" Tyler asked

"A woman can tell" Taylor smirked remembering my mother's words "And this must be her brother"

Tyler looked at the sick Pokemon and looked at her brother "She was poisoned..."

"Do we have an antidote? Or a Pecha Berry? Either one will neutralize the poison" the girl twin commented

"Afraid not... But there might be a spot near by" the boy twin said

"Take a lap?" Taylor asked

"On it. Plusle, you and Minun stay here and help Taylor with anything she needs" Tyler said kneeling next to the brother Ralts "This is for your family. Wanna lend a hand?"

The Ralts agreed to go with Tyler and they went off. They were walking in the forest for any signs of a Pecha Berry

"So you took all our food so you could keep your sister's strength up right?" Tyler asked

"Ralts" the Feeling Pokemon nodded

"Well I guess I understand. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for Taylor either. That's what family's for right?" Tyler smiled

Ralts pointing to a tree growing a red type of berry on a vine

"That's a Cheri Berry. It cures paralysis not poison" Tyler explained

After a little while Ralts noticed another tree growing a purple and yellow berry

"Nope. That's a Chesto Berry. That's to wake up any sleeping Pokemon" he explained

Ralts pointed to another tree growing a berry that kinda look like a blue strawberry

"Rawst Berry, for all your burning Pokemon needs" Tyler said looking past some trees and noticing a light pink berry, smirking "Jackpot"

The two made their way to the Pecha Berry tree. Without hesitation Ralts tried to climb the tree but fell down but was caught by Tyler

"Don't worry we'll get them. Your sister's gonna be fine" Tyler said lifting Ralts high enough to grab a berry "Get a good one"

Ralts grabbed the one he thought it was the best

"And we have a winner" Tyler smiled "Let's get back to the- Huh?"

Along with the berry Ralts accidentally pulled a couple Wurmple out. The Wurmple assumed they were trying to steal their food and attacked them

Taylor was sitting in the same spot still holding the shiny Ralts "Come on Tyler. How long does it take to find a berry? Can you two get some more water please?"

Plusle and Minun took a small bucket and went to get more water for Taylor

Taylor placed her hand over Ralts' head and felt how hot she was "Tyler please hurry..."

Back in the forest Tyler and Ralts were dodging Poison Stings by the Wurple

"You know, it'd be really nice to go one daY without getting attcked by a horde of Pokemon! One day! Is that too much!" Tyler panicked

A couple of the Wurple went from Poison Sting to String Shot but Tyler quickly grabbed Ralts and dove into the bushes

"Let me guess. Your sister got hit with a Poison Sting didn't she?" Tyler asked

Ralts nodded

"I thought so. Those Wurmple looked like they might've seen you somewhere before. Guess they had a bone to pick with you" Tyler said peeking out and seeing it was all clear "Let's go"

They had only taken a few steps out when the hiding Worm Pokemon jumped into the air and released a storm of Poison Sting

"No!" Tyler gasped covering Ralts with his body

"Ralts!" Ralts sent out a small telekinetic pulse that shattered a small amount of the poison needles

Tyler looked up and noticed they were the only things that didn't get hit "What the...? Did you do that?"

Ralts jumped out from Tyler's arms and rose is head showing his now glowing light blue eyes. The Wurple stopped in their tracks and were sent flying back into the forest

"That was Confusion! That was amazing!" Tyler cheered

Ralts looked at Tyler and smiled at his compliment

"Come on let's get back to our sisters!"

The two made there way back to tree where Taylor, Plusle, Minun, and the shiny Ralts were waiting. They fed the Pecha Berry to the sick Feeling Pokemon and in no time flat she was up and moving around. The sister Ralts was very energetic and happy

"Thank goodness" Taylor smiled

"Looks like you picked a good one" Tyler said "Come on Taylor, Malik's probably looking for us"

"You're right. You two take care of yourselves. I hope we see each other again one day. Bye!" Taylor said walking off with her brother

The twins and their partners made their way back to their campsite but they were the only ones there

"Malik still isn't here?" Tyler asked

"Now I'm really worried. Where could he be?" Taylor panicked

As of on cue I walked up with Mawile and Seedot "Where could who be?" "Mawile?" "Seedot?"

"Malik!" Taylor gasped hugging me tight and then pulling my cheek "Where have you been?!"

"Ow ow ow! I was training! Easy!" I winced

"For this long?" Tyler asked

"Better save than sorry" I chuckled

Out of nowhere the brother and sister Ralts walked up behind us

"Who are they?" I asked

"What're you doing here?" the twins asked in unison

The shiny Ralts ran up and hugged Taylor's leg. Taylor's eyes turned to hearts as she picked up the Pokemon and hugged her back

"Did you guys come all this way to thank us?" Tyler smiled

"Ralts" the brother stood in front of Tyler with a smile

"I get it. Take it from a guy who just went threw this, I think they wanna come with you" I smiled

"Is that true?" Taylor asked

Both Pokemon nodded. The twins took out a couple Pokeballs and caught the Pokemon

"Yay!" Taylor cheered

"Alright!" Tyler smirked

"I have no idea where those two came from but at the same time it really doesn't matter cuz more family is alright with me" I laughed "You two had a day huh?"

"We'll explain later but I'm starving" Taylor blushed

"Me too" Tyler added

Suddenly all of our stomachs growled at the same time

"I guess it's decided" I joked "Let's eat"

 _((Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	8. Schooled

_((Quick Recap: Both Tyler and Taylor caught a Ralts. Now the group is back on the road))_

After resting up for a while we finally made to Petalburg City. It took longer than the first time but that was probably because we kept getting sidetracked. After healing up at the Pokemon Center, we made our way to the gym and met the Gym Leader, Norman. I was determined to get the battle started but Norman told us that I need four badges to challenge him

"WHAT?!" we all gasped

"But we thought you were the first gym" Taylor said

"I may be the closest gym but I'm technically the forth gym you have to challenge" Norman explained

"Can't you make an exception?" I pleaded

"I'll tell you what. Let's have an one-on-one battle. Right now. If you win I'll have an official gym battle with you" Norman said

"Deal" I grinned

Norman and I stood by the lake and readied our Pokemon. Of course I went with Mawile and Norman threw out a large ape looking creature known as Slaking. That Pokemon was unfamiliar to me so I pulled out my Pokedex

 _"Slaking, the Lazy Pokemon. This Pokemon lives lying on it's side. It only rolls over and moves when there is no more grass to eat"_ the Pokedex explained

"Doesn't sound so tough" I smirked "Let's do this Mawile!"

"Ma!"

Tyler stood in the middle and made sure we were ready "Begin!"

"Let's start off strong! Use Bite!" I instucted

Mawile ran at Slaking with her jaws ready to chomp down on it. Neither Norman or Slaking made a move. Mawile dug her teeth into Slaking but it didn't even flinch

"What?" I gasped "Try Feint Attack!"

Mawile took off and disappeared. She came back behind Slaking and slammed into it but not so much as a nudge was made

"Slaking's defense sure is high" Taylor said

"Mawile's not even making a dent. Norman raised his Pokemon well" Tyler mumbled

Slaking scratched it's side and slowly stood up. Mawile went to attack again but was brushed off by Slaking like it was nothing

I growled "Fairy Wind!"

Mawile spun as fast as she could senting the current at the Lazy Pokemon. Slaking took the jit a slid by just a tiny bit

"Feint Attack" Norman said

Slaking vanished and came back behind Mawile

"Mawile?!" my partner gasped

Slaking swung it's arm and sent Mawile flying into the water

"Mawile!" I yelled diving into the water

"Oh no" Taylor whimpered

There was a calmness for a while and Tyler was about to jump in after me but I had surfaced holding a fainted Mawile

"You okay?" Tyler asked helping me onto dryland

"One hit..." I mumbled

"What?" Taylor asked

"One hit... That's all it took..." I repeated

Norman walked up and returned Slaking to it's Pokeball "That's why you need four badges before you can challenge me. It's tto early before you can challenge my gym. Now go. Get stronger. And come back and ask for another battle"

I walked past Norman looking down "Yes sir..."

We had gotten Mawile to the Pokemon Center and healed her up. After getting my partner back, I thanked Norman for the battle and promised I'd return for a much better challenge. He seemed happy at my determination and said he'd see me soon. He also told me that the first official gym was in Rustboro City. We got ourselves together and headed out. We met with Mr. Briney again and he seemed pretty happy that Mawile and I were a team now. We told us the way to Rustboro City was threw Petalburg Woods so that's where we went

I looked down at Mawile who seemed upset "You okay?"

"Mawile..." she responded

I kneeled down to her "If you're sad that we lost... don't. If anything it's my fault"

She didn't say anything

"Noticed how I said 'we'. We fought and lost that battle together. We win or loose together. That's what partners do. That's how this works" I smiled "Like I said back at Prof. Birch's lab, we're stuck with each other"

Mawile smiled at my words "Mawile!"

"I hope you two learned something from all this" Tyler said

"Yeah, follow the rules" I smirked

"Mhm" the twins hummed

"Also, don't judge a book by it's cover. That Slaking didn't really look all that strong but what it was capaple of... I really do have a lot to learn" I concluded

"Meh... Take what you can get" Tyler shrugged

We had made it half way threw Petalburg Woods when something caught my eye. There was a Pokemon hanging upside down on a branch

"What is that?" I asked pulling out my Pokedex

 _"Slakoth. The Slaker Pokemon. If it eats just three leaves a day, it is satisfied. Other than that, it sleeps for 20 hours a day"_ the Pokedex said

"Sounds like Slaking" Taylor noticed

"Actually Slakoth eventually evolves into Slaking" Tyler explained

"You don't say" I grinned

"Malik?" Taylor asked noticing the look on my face

I ran forward and threw a Pokeball "Seedot!"

Seedot came out and stood in the sunlight

"What's he doing?" Taylor asked

"When I was gone I thought Seedot a new move" I answered

"A new move? Which one?" Tyler asked

"You'll see" I smirked

Slakoth came down and used Scratch on my little Seed Pokemon but he took and began forming a little glowing orb in front of himself

"That's not Bide..." Taylor said

"Nope. Alright Seedot use Solar Beam!" I commanded

Seedot did as I said and fired a bright laser and sent Slakoth into a tree. I quickly threw a Pokeball at it while I had the chance. The ball shook for a moment before finally catching it

"Alright!" I cheered "Good job Seedot. That move suits you perfectly"

"Mawile" my partner nodded

I picked up the Pokeball and let Slakoth out "Welcome to team"

Slakoth stared at me and used Yawn. I immediately drew very tired and started dozing off. Tyler shook me to keep me from falling asleep

"Malik! Malik! Don't fall asleep!" Tyler demanded "At least try to hold out til we get to Rustboro!"

"Sleepy... Bed time... Goodnight..." I said passing out

"Geez..." Taylor smiled and sighed

The twins caught me before I collapsed and carried me towards the town while my team followed. We checked into the Pokemon Center and the twins put me in bed. A few hours later I finally woke up

"What a nap..." I yawned "What time is it?"

"Late" Tyler answered

I looked around and noticed the twins were sitting on the ground in their pajamas playing a card game with Plusle,Minun and the Ralts siblings passed out right next to them. I noticed at the end of my bed Mawile, Seedot and Slakoth were asleep

"Sleep well?" Taylor smirked

"Yeah" I chuckled "Thanks for bringing me here"

"You're welcome" Taylor smiled "You know that Solar Beam will come in handy tomorrow"

"Why's that?" I asked

"We asked around and found out that the the Gym Leader's name is Roxanne and she uses rock types. Solar Beam is your ace in the hole" Tyler said

"Awesome" I grinned "I won't make the same mistakes as earlier. I'll show the Hoenn region what I can do"

 _((Alright! Gym battle time! Let's see what Malik can do! Question, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	9. Roxanne

_((Quick Recap: Malik challenged Norman but got beat. After promising to return with four badges, the made their way to Rustboro. Malik also caught a Slakoth))_

We all stood in front of the gym. I was training all morning getting ready for my gym battle with Roxanne

"You ready for this?" Taylor asked

"Yes ma'am" I grinned

"Then let's go" Tyler said pushing me inside

We walked inside and saw the gym. There were large rocks all over the place. No doubt about it, this was definitely rock type gym. The twins sat in stands so they could watch the battle. I stood on one side of the field and saw a woman standing on the other side. She had brown hair and was wearing a school outfit

"You must be Roxanne" I said

"And you must be Malik" Roxanne smiled

"You know me?" I asked

"Norman called ahead saying you'd be stopping by" she said

"Glad we got that out the way" I smirked "I'd like to challenge you! Uh... please"

"Gladly" Roxanne nodded

The referre stood on the side of the field "This will be a two-on-two battle between Roxanne, the Gym Leader and Malik, the challenger! The battle will be over when one of either side is unable to continue! Also, only the challenger is allowed to switch Pokemon at will! Battle begin!"

"Mawile! Let's get started!" I announced

"Wile!" Mawile jumped into the air and stood on the battle field with her arms crossed and a grin on her face

"Geodude!" Roxanne threw a Pokeball and a rock with a face and arms popped out

"Malik has the advantage right?" Taylor asked

"Technically yes" Tyler said "Mawile is resistant is to rock moves but Geodude is a ground type too. Also Mawile would have a bigger advantage if she knew any steel type moves but she doesn't right now. Seedot on the other hand has a big advantage being a grass type. Not only that he knows Solar Beam as well so that'll be a big help"

"Can Bite, Feint Attack and Fairy Wind even hurt Geodude?" Taylor wondered

"Well Bite and Feint Attack are dark type moves and Fairy Wind is a fairy type move. Both of those would do normal damage nothing super effective" Tyler explained

"I see" Taylor nodded

"Geodude huh?" I asked myself "Okay, use Fairy Wind!"

"Defense Curl!" Roxanne yelled

Geodude curled itself up and Mawile's attack did nothing

"Go into Rollout!" Roxanne said

Still curled up Geodude started rotating at top speed and barreling towards Mawile

"Bite!" I yelled

Mawile used her jaws to stop Geodude in it's tracks. Mawile spun around and threw Geodude back to where it was. The Rock Pokemon dug it's hands in the ground and went back at Mawile

"Tackle!" Roxanne commanded

Geodude slammed into Mawile and sent her flying back into a large rock

"You okay Mawile?" I worried

Mawile shook her head and got back in the battle "Mawile!"

"Cool" I smiled

"Rollout again!" Roxanne called out

"Feint Attack!" I countered

Mawile vanished just as Geodude got to her. Geodude kept rolling around crashing threw some of the smaller rocks. Geodude seemed to be faster than the first time it used that move

"Is Geodude look faster to you?" Taylor asked her brother

"Makes sense. Rollout is a move that gets stronger and faster each time you use it" Tyler explained

Mawile reappeared and slammed Geodude into a big boulder. The Rock Pokemon dug into it and stopped. Geodude tried to move but it got stuck

"Fairy Wind!" I yelled

"Wile!" Mawile yelled sending her attack at the stuck Pokemon

Geodude got blasted and sent deeper into the rock it's stuck in

"Rollout!" Roxanne growled

Geodude spun it's way out of the rock and charged at Mawile

"And Rock Tomb!" Roxanne called out

Rocks surrounded Geodude as it rolled around. One by one rocks started pelting Mawile from every angle. I looked up and saw a opening

"Mawile, Feint Attack!" I yelled

Mawile disappeared and came back, knocking a rock into the ceiling making a large hole. Mawile came down and slammed Geodude into the ground, knocking it out

"Geodude is unable to battle! Mawile wins!" the referre said

"Alright!" Taylor cheered

"This isn't over yet. But he's off to a good start" Tyler smiled

I noticed Mawile looked tired "Mawile return"

Mawile nodded and came back next to me

"Don't think I didn't know what you did. Good job by the way. Seedot! Keep it going!" I called out throwing out a Pokeball

Seedot came out ready to battle. Roxanne returned Geodude to it's Pokeball and threw out and a statue looking creature with a big nose

"I have no idea what I'm looking at..." I mumbled taking out my Pokedex

 _"Nosepass, the Compass Pokemon. Its magnetic nose always faces north and draws iron objects to its body to protect itself better"_ the Pokedex said

"For the record, was that hole necesarry?" Roxanne sighed

"Sorry about that" I said looking at Mawile

Mawile made a pouty face

"It's fine... That aside, your Mawile sure is something" Roxanne smiled

"Yeah. A real piece of work" I smirked at my partner

Mawile stuck her tongue out at me

"Shall we continue?" Roxanne asked

"Oh yeah. Seedot in the sunlight!" I called out

Seedot ran under the hole Mawile made and started absorbing sunlight

"Use Rock Tomb!" Roxanne said

Rocks started flying at Seedot causing him to jump out of the sunlight early

"Seedot!" I gasped

Seedot was jumping around dodging incoming rocks but ended up being cornered. Rocks came down and covered Seedot in stones

"Seedot!" "Wile!" Mawile and I cried

"I didn't expect that to be so easy" Roxanne said

"Easy?" I grinned "That's a good one"

"Huh?" Roxanne gasped noticed the pile of rocks shaking

"Bide!" I yelled

Seedot fired it's way out of the rocks and sent Nosepass flying back. Nosepass skid to a stop

"That was a powerful Bide. How come Nosepass is still standing?" Taylor asked

"That would be Nosepass' ability, Study. It prevnts the Pokemon to get knocked out with one move" Tyler explained

"Impressive but not enough. Tackle!" Roxanne told her Pokemon

Nosepass slammed it's heavy body into Seedot and knocked him back. Luckily Seedot landed right under the hole in the ceiling

"Perfect" I said "Seedot!"

"Don't let it finish! Tackle!" Roxanne yelled

Nosepass went to deliver another blow to my Pokemon but it was too late. Seedot had finished charging up

"Solar Beam!"

"Dot!" Seedot fired a blinding laser that ingulfed Nosepass knocking it out of the field and into a wall

"Nosepass is unable to battle! Seedot is the winner! The victor is Malik the challenger!" the referre yelled

"YEAH!" the twins and I cheered

I ran out and picked up Seedot "Seedot that was amazing!"

Mawile walked up next to me trying to look cool "Mawile"

"You were too partner" I smiled bringing Mawile into the hug despite her trying to escape

Roxanne returned Nosepass to it's Pokeball and walked up to me "That sure was something. Never had a match like that before"

"Thanks. I think" I chuckled

"Trust me it's a compliment" she smiled turning to referre who was holding a pillow with a something on it "As proof of your victory at the Rustboro Gym, I give you the Stone Badge. Congratulations!"

"Thank you very much" I smiled taking the badge from her "Alright!" "Mawile!" "Seedot!"

"That was a awesome battle Malik" Tyler smiled

Taylor jumped up and hugged me "That was amazing! I'm so proud of you"

"Remember this is only the beginning. I still have to beat the rest of the gyms" I said

"Speaking of which, do you know which gym you're going to next?" Roxanne asked

"Nope" I answered

"Then I suggest the Dewford Gym" Roxanne smiled

"Looks like we're paying another visit to Mr. Briney" Tyler said

"Sounds like a plan" I agreed

 _((Victory is sweet. Next time Malik has a little encounter with a bad bunch. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	10. Nightmares

_((Malik challenged Roxanne and won the Stone Badge))_

Mawile and Seedot were tired from their battle so I got them healed up at the Pokemon Center. After that we were back on the road

"So we head back over to Mr. Briney right?" I asked

"That's right" Tyler answered

"Okay but can we go threw Route 116 first? I heard there's cute Pokemon there" Taylor said

"Seriously?" Tyler and I asked

"What?" Taylor shrugged

Tyler and I kept saying we should just head straight for 's place but Taylor used her secret weapon. She made her _Im gonna cry_ face. I always hated it when she used that against me so I agreed to go to make her stop. Before we could do anything some type of scientist asked us for our help. Apparently some people known as Team Aqua had stolen some parts from him. We reassured the man we'd get his property back to him. We headed down Route 116 and it didn't take long for Taylor to set her sights on a Pokemon that had crossed our path. It was the Kitten Pokemon known as Skitty. The little kitten looked tired, like it had just woke up from a nap

"A Skitty" I pointed out

"Are you gonna catch it?' Tyler asked

"Not yet" Taylor said giving the Pokemon a berry and some water to give it energy

Taylor said it didn't seem fair to battle a Pokemon if it's head wasn't in the game. She battled the Skitty with her Ralts and caught it

"Yay!" Taylor cheered holding her new Pokemon

"Our we done yet?" I asked

"Don't be so down. The whole point of a journey is to have fun" Taylor said walking forward

"Gotta give a point for that" Tyler smirked

"Hey I thought you were on my side" I whined

We walked for a short while when we came up to a cave and ran into a familiar face

"Mr. Briney?" we all wondered

"Oh, hello kids..." Mr. Briney frowned

"What are you doing here?" Tyler asked

"And why do you look so sad?" Taylor followed up

"Peeko and I were on our walk when we were attacked. He took Peeko!" Briney cried

"What?!" we all gasped

"Don't worry Mr. Briney, I'll find her!" I glared and ran inside the cave

"Malik wait!" the twins yelled

Mawile and I ran inside Rusturf Tunnel and saw a man wearing a blue outfit. Standing next to him was a Wingull

"Peeko!" I smiled

Mawile seemed relieved that he was okay "Wile!"

Wingull saw us running up and became very happy. The man stopped Peeko from coming over to us so I concluded that was the one who took the Seagull Pokemon in the first place

"Give Peeko back!" I demanded

"If you want it back so bad come and get it!" the man growled

The man threw out a Poochyena. I sent Mawile to take care of this

"Feint Attack!" I yelled

"Mawile!" Mawile disappered and slammed into the enemy

The Poochyena took the attack and used Howl to raise it's Attack power. I wasn't gonna give that man the chance to use anymore moves so I had Mawile use Fairy Wind to knock the Bite Pokemon out of the battle

"You want those parts so bad?! Here just take 'em!" the man growled giving me back what he stole and taking off

I dusted my hands off "Good riddance"

"Win!" Peeko cheered jumping on my shoulder

"Glad to see you're okay, Peeko" I smiled

Mr. Briney and my friends caught up to me and Peeko showered her trainer with love

"We saw that man running out. Was it Team Aqua?" Taylor wondered

"Yeah. I got those parts the guy was talking about too" I laughed

"You've saved my Peeko! Thank you so much! If there's anything you need from me just ask!" Mr. Briney said hugging his Pokemon

Mr. Briney back to his house and we went to Rustboro City. We met up with the scientist and gave him back his stolen parts. He introduced his to the president of the Devon Corporation, Mr. Stone. He thanked us for our assistance and asked us for one last thing

"These guys really like asking for help don't they?" I whispered to the twins

"Shh!" Taylor shushed me

Mr. Stone gave us a letter and asked us to deliver it to a man named Steven. Luckily he said could find him in Dewford, which is where we were going anyway so we accepted. We headed out and met up with Mr. Briney once more. He gladly gave us another ride to Dewford Town and we headed off. Dewford Town was really nice. Fresh air, the ocean, it was like a small vacation spot

"So, are we going to the gym of finding Steven first?" Taylor asked

"Gym first!" "Mawile!" my partner and I answered

"Calm down,Malik. The gym isn't going anywhere. We just track down Steven before he leaves town" Tyler said

Mawile and I sulked immediately. Taylor picked up Mawile and started walking while her brother pushed me along. We asked around town but know seemed to know where we could find Steven. After assuming he had left already, we got a tip that might be in Granite Cave so that's where we went. Mawile didn't seem too excited about going back there but had to get this letter to Steven. We went into the cave and entered and room with drawings all over the wall. There was man staring at the drawings as if he was studying them. He had light blue hair and was dressed very professionally. He seemed to be talking to himself about how the Pokemon looked didn't than how they should have and something called _Mega Evolution_. After that he noticed us and introduced himself as Steven. We gave Steven the letter and he asked us that if we found the drawings strange in any type of way. They didn't really seem weird to us, just a couple of Pokemon by the looks of it. Steven thanked us for our trouble of tracking him down and took his leave. Steven was very nice. We looked foward to seeing him again. After Steven left I took another hard look at the drawings. I didn't know what it was but I had felt like these images were important

"Alright Malik we can go to the gym now" Tyler smirked

"Huh...?" I responded

"Malik?" Taylor asked concerned

I was in some sort of trance of the drawings

Tyler and Mawile shook me "Malik! Hey!" "Mawile!"

I shook my head and came back to reality "Huh? What?"

"Are you back?" Tyler asked

I tilted my head "Where'd I go?"

"You tell us. Are you okay?" Taylor asked

"Why wouldn't I be?" I shrugged

"You were staring at the wall like you hypnotized or something" Tyler said

"Was I? Sorry. It was like it was telling a story... I couldn't help but listen" I said

"What kind of story?" Taylor asked

"Something about wreaking havoc? I... I can't remember" I answered

Tyler didn't like that I lost my memory by looking at a picture "Let's get outta here"

We left the cave and the twins kept asking me if I was okay or not

"Guys, I'm fine. Whatever it was it's gone now" I said

"I'd still feel better if we took it easy for a while. Let's just call it a day and go to the gym tomorrow" Taylor said

I wanted to take the Dewford Gym now but something told me Taylor was right. We checked into the Pokemon Center and got changed into our more comfortable clothes. After dinner I got in a little more training and went off to bed. We all let out our Pokemon so they could sleep with us

"Goodnight" I said lying down

"Goodnight" the twins replied in their bunk beds

Mawile got next to me and fell asleep. I looked at the bed over mine and saw Plusle, Minun, Seedot, Slakoth, the Ralts siblings, and Skitty asleep as well. I smiled and peacefully went ot sleep. Everything was good for a while until I suddenly couldn't stop coughing. I opened my eyes and I was standing in a molten area sorrounded by a vast ocean. I heard loud roars and saw two Pokemon fighting each other. I couldn't make them out but they reminded me of the images I saw back in Granite Cave. The Pokemon were bringing there fight towards me but my legs wouldn't let me move. I couldn't tell if it was some sort of trick or if I was just too scared. It was almost engulfed by the fight when a bright green light filled the sky. I covered my eyes to prevent myself from being blinded

"Ah!" I yelled jumping up and hitting the head on the bottom of the top bed "Gah...!"

I fell back unto my pillow and held my head. I looked around to find myself back in my bed. I concluded that it was all dream and went for a walk to calm myself down. I went outside and slashed water on my face

"Okay... That was weird..." I panted

"Mawile" a voice called out

I looked back and saw my team

"Hey guys. Did I wake you up? Sorry" I said as Seedot jumped on my shoulder and Slakoth crawled onto my back

Mawile came up and sat next to me. The fresh air felt nice so we just sat there on the beach for a while. The moon looked so beautiful shining off the water like it did. The waves kept hitting my feet whenever they came up. This is just what I needed to help me relax. My Pokemon fell back to sleep but I didn't want to wake them. They looked at peace as well. Sooner or later I followed their lead and drifted off to sleep too. A bright light woke me up and I somewhat panicked, thinking I was in that dream again until I looked up and saw it was just the sun rising. I calmed down and noticed my team was still passed out so I just kept still to keep from disturbing them

Taylor walked outside rubbing her eyes "Malik? What are you doing up so early?"

"I had a bad dream and came out here to calm down. These guys decided to keep me company" I smiled "What are you doing up?"

"I woke up and saw you were gone" Taylor said sitting next to me "The sun sure is pretty"

"You should've seen the moon" I smirked

"The moon? How long were you out here?" Taylor asked

"All night" I shrugged

"You sure everything's alright?"

I smiled at her "I sure"

Taylor smiled back at me and yawned

"Maybe you should go back to..."

Before I could finish my statement Taylor rested her head on my shoulder on fell asleep

"...bed" I said finishing my sentence "When did I become a pillow?"

 _((Is Malik psychic is something? What do you think happened to him in the cave and in his dream? Let me know. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	11. Brawly

_((Quick Recap: The team met Steven and Malik had a strange dream about some Pokemon having a brutal battle))_

I was still sitting on the beach while Taylor, Mawile, Seedot, and Slakoth were asleep all around me. I had been there so long I had fallen back to sleep. After a while I felt someone shaking me

"Uhh... Wha..." I groaned openning my eyes and seeing Tyler in front of me

Tyler clapped his hands "Wake up Sleeping Beauty!"

I stirred myself awake "I'm up. I'm up"

"Well at least one you are" Tyler said pointing to the side

I looked at my shoulder at the still sleeping Taylor and panicked "Gah!"

I jumped out of the way causing Taylor to fall down

"Ow!" Taylor whined as she hit the ground

I didn't want to give Tyler the idea that Taylor and I were like that on purpose. I explained that the last thing I remember is Taylor coming outside to check on me and fell asleep

"Uhuh. And Taylor, you just so happen to fall asleep on Malik's shoulder?" Tyler smirked

Taylor growled and bushed harshly "It... It was an accident!"

"Riiiiight" Tyler nodded

"It was an accident!" Taylor and I yelled

Tyler laughed and walked inside

"Taylor?" I said

"Yes?" Taylor replied

"It WAS just an accident... right?" I asked

"Of course! An accident" Taylor blushed looking off to the side "And nothing more"

"Okay. Just wanted to be sure" I nodded walking to the Pokemon Center with Seedot and Slakoth

Mawile looked at Taylor and smirked

"What?" Taylor asked

Mawile grinned and rolled her eyes "Wile"

Tayloy gasped at Mawile as she followed me inside

"What's that supposed to mean?" Taylor asked

We all got ready for the day and headed for the gym. We had some set backs, with Steven and my strange trance and all, but we were finally ready for me to challange the Dewford Town Gym. We went inside and met the Gym Leader, a man named Brawly. Personally, he gave off the energy of a surfer than a Gym Leader. He welcomed us to his gym and agreed to battle me

"This will be a two-on-two battle between Brawly the Gym Leader and Malik the challanger! The battle will be over when both Pokemon from either side are unable to battle. Futhermore, only the challenger is allowed to switch Pokemon at will!" the referee announced

"Machop! Come on out!" Brawly called out

"Chop!" The Superpower Pokemon came out of it's Pokeball onto the field

"A Fighting-Type huh?" I smirked "Mawile! Let's get started!"

"Mawile!" Mawile jumped into the air and landed on the field

"Battle begin!" the referee yelled

"Bulk Up!" Brawly yelled immediately

Machop raised it's Attack and Defense

"Mawile, Bite!" I called out

Mawile rushed forward and tried to bite Machop but grabbed her jaw and use Seismic Toss to through her back where she came

"Machop sure is strong. Alright, use Feint Attack!" I commanded

Mawile did as she was told and vanished into thin air

"Watch yourself Machop" Brawly said

"Machop..." Machop replied keeping an eye out

Mawile came back behind Machop and slammed it to the ground. Machop gathered itself and charged at Mawile

"Bulk Up again and then use Karate Chop!" Brawly yelled

Machop raised it's stats again and delivered a powerful chop to my partner, sending her flying back

"Mawile!" I gasped

"Karate Chop one more time!" Brawly demanded

Machop ran at Mawile ready to finish it's battle

"Jump!" I yelled

Mawile obeyed and jumped into the to avade the strike

"Fairy Wind!" I called out

Mawile blasted her attack downward and blew Machop out of battle

"Alright!" I cheered

Brawly returned Machop to it's Pokeball and took out another one "Makuhita!"

The Pokemon came out of and displayed it's power

"Maku-whata?" I said taking out my Pokedex

 _"Makuhita, the Guts Pokemon. It toughens up by slamming into thick trees over and over. It gains a sturdy body and dauntless spirit"_ the Pokedex said

"Sounds tough. Can you still battle Mawile?" I asked

"Wile!" Mawile grinned

"Let's go!" I smirked

"Bulk Up and Arm Thrust!" Brawly demanded

Makuhita raised it's stats and rushed at Mawile

"Bulk Up again?" Taylor asked

"Bulk Up raises the user's Attack and Defense. Brawly's trying to both keep his Pokemon in while taking Malik's Pokemon out" Tyler explained

Makuhita tried to hit Mawile with it's Arm Thrust but Mawile dodge them all

"Feint Attack!" I yelled

Mawile disappeared just as Makuhita went for another hit. Mawile came back and was about to hit the Guts Pokemon, but apparently that's what Brawly wanted

"Knock Off!" Brawly said

Makuhita knocked Mawile away before she could deliver her attack

"Finish this! Arm Thrust!" Brawly commanded

"Makuhita!" the Pokemon rushed forward

This time Brawly fell into my trap

"Bite!" I yelled

Mawile bit down and on Makuhita's arm stopping it in it's tracks

"Makuhita, get away!" Brawly pleaded

"Too late, Fairy Wind!" I demanded

Mawile spun around, still holding Makuhite having it deal with Mawile's attack at full power. Makuhita felt the full effect of the move and was blown away into a wall

"Makuhita!" Brawly cried

Makuhita was sticking out of the wall in it's fainted state

 _ **MALIK VS. BRAWLY! WINNER: MALIK!**_

"Both of the Gym Leader's Pokemon are unable to battle! The winner ir Malik the challenger!" the referee called out

"Alright!" I cheered

Mawile held up the peace sign while pulling her signature face

"Yay!" Taylor clapped "Malik won!"

"And with one Pokemon" Tyler added

"That sure was something" Brawly smiled walking over "As proof of your victory of the Dewford Gym, I give you the Knuckle Badge"

"Thank you Brawly" I smiled accepting the badge

"Have you decided what gym to challange next?" Brawly asked

"Nope" the twins answered for me

"In that case, how about the Mauville City Gym?" Brawly offered

"Sounds like a plan. Mauville City it is!" I smiled

We went back to the Pokemon Center to rest up before hitting the road again. I was sitting on my bed drawing future strategies and combinations, Taylor was writing in a little book, and Tyler was reading a magazine. For a while now Tyler kept looking over his magazine at me. I didn't notice it at first but I finally caught him

"Why do you keep looking at me dude?" I asked

"Just thinking" Tyler shrugged

I looked at Taylor in confusion and she just shrugged

"So Taylor you gonna watch the sunrise with Malik again?" Tyler asked

Taylor dropped her pen and blushed deeply. I had no comment to Tyler's statement and went back to doing what I was doing

"I mean it's okay if you do as long as you don't _accidentally_ fall asleep on him again" Tyler smirked

"Tyler!" Taylor screamed and chased him out the room

"Mawile! Wile!" Mawile laughed on the bed

"What's so funny?" I asked

Mawile started acting out Taylor when she slept on my shoulder and when she was embarassed after waking up

"Not funny. Now if you excuse me, I have to save Tyler" I said leaving the room

Mawile was about to follow me when she noticed the book Taylor was writing in and grinned devilishly "Wile"

 _((Two badges down, six to go. Let's see how Malik fairs against the Mauville Gym in a chapter or two. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	12. Maxie and Archie

_((Quick Recap: Malik defeated Brawly and received the Knuckle Badge. Also, the team has taken Brawly up on his offer and now head for the gym in Mauville City))_

We gathered our things and met up with Mr. Briney at the docks. I shouldn't have been surprised when he said that President Stone had another favor to ask of us

"Of course he does..." "Mawile..." my partner and I sighed

Briney explained that the Devon Parts from before are supposed to to go to some guy named Stern at Slateport's shipyard. Luckliy, Mr. Briney, being the awesome old man that he is, volunteered to make sure we got there safely

 _((What? We all know Mr. Briney is awesome))_

We arrived at Slateport without any issue. Just like Dewford, it was sunny and beautiful. We waved goodbye to Mr. Briney and Peeko and went to deliver the Devon Parts. After relaxing on the beach for a little while we heading up to Slateport City. It had a nice shopping center and Taylor bought a few things. Mainly accessories for her Pokemon but Tyler and I didn't have the hearts to tell her she couldn't. There was a builing by the water and Tyler concluded that was most likely the shipyard, so we headed over. When we got inside we met a man named Dock who told us the parts we were trying to deliver weren't gonna do. Dock explained that Captain Stern was probably at some museum so he asked us to go get him

"You're right Malik, everyone wants us to run their errands..." Tyler groaned

"Told ya"

We headed to the museum but something was up. There were tons of people wearing red suits standing outside

"Who are those guys?" I wondered

"Team Aqua?" the twins asked

"Didn't they where blue clothes though?" I replied

"Play it cool guys..." Tyler mumbled as we walked to the building

"Hey. Keep up the good work" "How you doing?" "Nice shoes" the twins and I casually said trying to get pass the guards

We made our way inside and there were guys on the inside as well

"Should we be worried?" Taylor whispered

"As long as they aren't causing trouble I think we'll be okay" Tyler said

We made our way upstairs and met Captain Stern. He thanked us for coming out of our way to deliver the parts he ordered

"Don't you have guys for this or something?" I asked

Tyler punched me in the arm for being rude causing Stern to chuckle. Suddenly some of the guys from downstairs came up and threatened us

"Who are you people?!" Stern yelled

"We're Team Magma!" the grunt announced

 _"Magma?"_ I thought as the lava scene of my dream flashed through my mind

The grunts explained that their boss needed the Devon Parts

"I don't know what these things do... But if you want them, that's more that enough reason to not let you have it" I growled and tossed the case to Taylor "Taylor, protect Captian Stern!"

Taylor caught the case and stood in front of Stern "Right!"

"Got my back?" I asked Tyler

"Well someone has to. Minun, help me out!" Tyler smirked and sent out Minun

The grunts sent out Numel and Zubat

"Slakoth! Let's get started!" I yelled and sent out my Pokemon

"Slakoth?" Tyler asked

"I believe in my Pokemon" I grinned

The Numel used Focus Energy to get itself pumped up while Zubat flew at Slakoth with Wing Attack

"Scratch!" I yelled

Slakoth took the hit and slashed at Zubat but missed

"Minun, Spark!" Tyler commanded

Minun surrounded itself with lightning and slammed into Zubat

"Nice!" I smiled

Slakoth saw me cheer for Minun and face our opponents

"Tackle!" Numel's trainer yelled

Numel did as it was told and slammed it's body into Minun

"Finish it with Bite!" Zubat's trainer demanded

Zubat flew at Minun with it's sharp fangs

"Minun!" Tyler gasped

I growled "Slakoth quick, use-"

Before I could finish my command, Slakoth vanished

"Huh?" I gasped

Slakoth reappeared and slashed Zubat out of the air with Scratch

"That was Feint Attack!" Tyler pointed out

"Slakoth knows that?" I asked

"Wow..." Taylor whispered

Tyler saw an opening "Spark!"

"Feint Attack!" I said

Slakoth and Minun nailed both opposing Pokemon in their attacks, knocking them both of the battle

Tyler and I high fived "Alright!"

"Defeated? By mere children?" a voice said

We looked over and saw a man standing on the other side of the room. He was skinny, with red hair, wearing glasses, and a red suit like the men we were fighting

"How is it that you are being held up with the simple task of retrieving a case?" the man asked as he walked over

We were silent as he walked over to us. I didn't know what it was, but something told not to fight this guy... Not yet anyway

"I am called Maxie" the man said making eye contact with me "I am the leader of Team Magma. And who might you be?"

I gulped and growled at the man "M-Malik"

This feeling was new to me but at the same time it felt familiar. Despite whatever I was feeling, I wasn't gonna let this guy hurt anyone. Not before he took me out anyway

Taylor saw a bead of sweat go down the side of my face _"Malik's... nervous? He never gets nervous. This Maxie guy must be on some other level"_

Maxie explained that he would educate me in the ways of the world, something about the land. He was about to say what he meant but said that I was too young to comprehend his ideals. Maxie told me to hope I never stand in their way again and took his leave. The second Maxie left I felt like I could breathe again

"Malik? Are you okay?" Taylor asked

I could feel my heart pounding on the inside of my chest but it was beating so loud I couldn't hear it "Yeah... I think so"

After everything calmed down we gave Captain Stern the parts that he ordered. He said he can finally set his plans into motion, which involved searching the ocean floor or something. I didn't really listen. Stern thanked us for our help and left. We left the building and ran into a man outside. He had a thick beard and was wearing a blue outfit, a bandana, and an anchor necklace. I couldn't put my finger on it but he gave off the same energy as Maxie

"Hey, have you seen a man with red hair and glasses?" the man asked in a threatening deep voice

"No. We haven't" I lied with a glare

"I see" the man said starting to walk away

I stood there as shadows covered my eyes and balled my fists "Hey..."

Rather he ignored me or didn't hear me because he kept walking

"Hey!" I yelled

The man stopped and looked at me over his shoulder

"Who are you?" I spoke up

Tyler and Taylor were surprised to see me be so forward. Normally I would never act like that. The man walked to me and got in my face with a serious look in his eye. Mawile was about to pick a fight with the guy but I put a stop to it and stood my ground

"What did you say, little one?" the man asked

That feeling was back. My heart pounded, I felt sweat fall, for a second I thought I was suffocating. It took a second but I finally spoke up

"I said... _Who are you?_ " I glared

"The name... is Archie" he smirked "I run Team Aqua. Perhaps you've heard of us?"

"Something like that" I said remembering the man from Rusturf Tunnel

"Are you allies of Team Magma?" Taylor asked

"Something like that" Archie smirked quoting me

"What are your goals?" I growled

Archie's plans sounded similar or Maxie's but the opposite at the same time. Maxie wants to change the land while Archie wants to change the sea

 _((I don't rreally want to get to much in their speeches and plans, mainly because we all already know them))_

"You caught in a good mood so I'll leave you be, boyo. But remember, use such a tone with me again, you won't walk away unscathed" Archie said

 _"How many times am I gonna get threatened today?"_ I thought

Archie backed out of my face and walked off, taking that scary feeling of mine with him. When the cost was clear we went to the Pokemon Center to check in for the night. When we got to the room the twins pushed me into a chair and got in my face

"What was that?!" they yelled

"What?" I asked

"Picking a fight with that guy! Do you have ANY idea what he could've done to you?!" Tyler yelled

"Yeah I did. But that doesn't mean I should let him do whatever he wants" I replied

Taylor stomped her foot down and grabbed my shoulders "That's not our responsibility Malik!"

"He..." I mumbled looking down

"What?" Taylor asked

"He..." I mumbled again

"What?!" Taylor yelled

I kept my head down so my hat covered my face "He could've hurt you guys... I wasn't gonna let him. Maxie either. I don't care who I have to pick a fight with! I won't let them hurt any of you!"

The room was silent for a minute

"Malik..." Taylor sighed

"What?" I asked

The girl pulled me out of the chair and hugged me "I don't care you pick a fight with. Tyler and I are here too"

"She's right man. You're not the only one on the journey. We're in this together" Tyler smiled and put his hand on my shoulder

I smiled and nodded "Right"

Mawile pushed Taylor off of me and hugged me herself causing everyone to laugh

"It's been a long day. Let's call it" Tyler said

"Yeah" Taylor and I agreed

 _((I know it got kinda deep around the end there but it felt right. What do you think? Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	13. Wattson

_((Hello! I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was good. For once in a long time, my holiday was actually pretty nice. And the good news keeps on coming. I checked the story and saw it had over seven hundred views and that just made my whole week. And yes I was that happy. So I'm gonna take a minute to thank everyone who reads this story and thank you for your support. I know this isn't the best story but I'm happy with it and I'm happy that people like it too. Also, I want to apologize for taking so long to put up a new chapter. It's just I lost my laptop, my 3DS broke so I had to get a new one, I got the new Pokemon Sun game and spent like 3 days playing it, ect. So yeah, I had a pretty long couple of weeks. But the RENEGADE team is back. So I hope you enjoy this chapter))_

 _((Quick Recap: The team made it to Slateport and had a run in with both Maxie and Archie, but luckily no one got hurt))_

After a crazy day of being of being threatened back-to-back, the Pokemon, the twins and I got oir things packed up and headed out. There was an easier way to get to out destination but since we didn't have bikes we had to walk. On the way there I did some training for my upcoming battle. After a decent stretch of land, we finally made it to Mauville City, which looked amazing. It was like a giant mall

"This place is awesome!" I smiled

"Think we'll get lost in here?" Taylor asked

"Probably. Isn't there suppose to be a gym in here?" Tyler wondered

"I think so. Hey, as long as we're here let's do some looking around" I offered "And the Pokemon could use some R&R while we're at it"

"Sounds good to me" Taylor smiled letting out her Pokemon

Tyler agreed and did the same. Plusle, Minun, both Ralts, and Skitty came out of their Pokeballs and seemed happy to get some fresh air. We decided to split up to see more the mall, er... city

I watched the twins walked off with their Pokemon and let out my own "You guys wanna do some sight-seeing?"

The small group looked excited, especially Seedot who was really hyper for some reason

"Easy Jumpy" I smirked letting Slakoth onto my back "Come on"

A couple hours later I saw Taylor in the food court. She was sittiing a table with her Pokemon and was eating a small salad while occasionally tickling one of her Pokemon at random

"Hey Taylor" I said making myself known

"Hey. Having fun?" Taylor asked

"Oh yeah. Glad I found this place. I've been looking for it for like an hour" I laughed

Taylor looked down and noticed Seedot was running around in small circles at high speeds "Is Seedot okay?"

"I think so. He's been doing that all day" I shrugged

"Maybe he just needs some excersize. Lets go find Tyler and the gym so you can have your battle. That should get rid all that extra energy" Taylor suggested

"Let's do it" I smiled as my stomach growled "After lunch"

After our meal we returned our Pokemon, excluding Mawile, to their Pokeballs and went off to look for Tyler. It took a minute but finally found him. Tyler was talking to some guy. He was a somewhat short old man with a white beard. Taylor and I made our way over and Tyler introduced us. The man's man was Wattson. Tyler explained that while he was looking around he ran into Wattson and they became friends surprisingly quickly

"Malik, Tyler tells me that your here to challenge my gym" Wattson smiled

"That's right" I smiled for a second before noticing what he just said "Wait... You're the Mauville City Gym Leader?"

"That's me!" Wattson laughed

"Awesome! Let's battle right now!" "Mawile!" my partner and I smiled

"If we battle right here it wouldn't be an official gym match. How about we go to the Mauville Gym?" Wattson suggested

After a short laugh session we headed to the gym. Apparently I walked right passed it a couple of times and didn't even notice. The inside looked like a power plant. The twins took their seats and Wattson and I took our places on the battlefield. After the referee saw we were ready he explained the basics

"This will be a two-on-two battle between Wattson the Gym Leader and Malik the challenger! The battle will be over when all three Pokemon of either side are unable to continue! Also, only the challenger can substitute Pokemon at will!" the ref announced "Now, battle begin!"

"Alright! Mawile, let's get started!" I called out

"Wile!" my partner stood on the field ready to battle

Wattson took out a Pokeball and threw it "Magnemite!"

A small metal sphere with huge eye and two magnets came out and floated in the air "MAG!"

"Magnemite, huh?" I mumbled taking out my Pokedex

 _"Magnemite, the Magnet Pokemon. The electromagnetic waves emitted by the units at the sides of it's head expel antigravity, which allows it to float"_ the Pokedex explained

"An Electric-and-Steel type. Okay" I grinned "Mawile, Bite!"

"Mawile!" Mawile charged ahead and sent her jaws towards the Magnet Pokemon

Just as Mawile got close and snapped her jaws Magnemite zipped to the side

"It's fast..." I mumbled

"Tackle!" Wattson called out

Without hesitation slammed into my partner sending her back

"Strong too. Fairy Wind!" I yelled

Mawile jumped back and sent her attack at her opponent but only to missed again. Magnemite then flying around Mawile too fast for her eyes to follow

"Thunder Wave!" Wattson demanded

"MITE!" Magnemite continued zipping around Mawile and began blasting her with a current of electricity

"Wile!" Mawile winced

Magnemite finished it's attack and floated away. Mawile was slumped over as electricity kept appearing all over her body

"Are you okay?" I asked

Mawile stood up straight and gave me a thumbs up

"Mawile..." I mumbled "We need to find a way to keep Magnemite from moving like that"

"Tackle!" Wattson yelled

Just like before Magnemite rushed at Mawile. I told Mawile to dodge but the effects of Thunder Wave caused her to stumble after taking a a couple steps. Magnemite slammed into Mawile and knocked her back

 _"If Magnemite just sat still for a second I could think..."_ I thought _"That's it!"_

"Let's wrap this up. Tackle!"

Magnemite rushed towards at Mawile

"Mawile, grab Magnemite!" I ordered

When Magnemite made contact Mawile grabbed it so it couldn't get away

"Now Feint Attack!"

Mawile disappeared with Magnemite and came back just to slam it into the ground

"Mite..." Magnemite winced

"Interesting" Wattson smirked

"Use Bite!" I announced

"Tackle!" Wattson called out

"Mawile!" I yelled knowing that she knew what I wanted her to do

Mawile grabbed Magnemite again

I was about to call my next move when I saw a smirk cross Wattson's face "Huh?"

"Thunder Shock!" Wattson said

"What?!" I gasped

"MITE!" Magnemite let out a blast of eletricity

Since Mawile was holding Magnemite she was blasted at point blank range

"Mawile!" Mawile screamed

The blast Mawile flying back and collasped. Mawile struggeled not to fall out when Magnemite came in for another tackle

I growled "Feint Attack!"

Just as Magnemite came into it's finishing blow, Mawile vanished and reappeared in the air

"Bite!"

Mawile snapped her jaws onto the Magnet Pokemon and threw it as hard as she could into the ground, causing Magnemite to faint

"Magnemite is unable to battle! Mawile is the winner!" the referee announced

Mawile stood there panting "Ma...wile... Ma..."

"Mawile, return" I said

Mawile nodded and came back to my side

"How you feeling buddy?" I asked concerned

Mawile rubbed her head "Mawile..."

Wattson returned Magnemite to it's Pokeball and threw out another Pokemon. This resembled a Pokeball. I was unfamiliar with it so I pulled out my Pokedex

 _"Voltorb, the Ball Pokemon. It looks like a Pokeball. It is dangerous because it may eletrocute or explode on contact"_ the Pokedex said

"Slakoth! Keep it going!" I said sending out my next Pokemon

"Use Rollout!" Wattson yelled

Voltorb began rolling at high speed at Slakoth

"Feint Attack!" I ordered

Slakoth vanished before Voltorb could hit it. Slakoth came back and slammed into Voltrob, knocking it off balance

"Before it has time to recover, use Yawn!" I said

Slakoth sent his attack but Voltorb went into Rollout again to evade

"I remember Geodude using that move back at the Rustboro Gym. It gets stronger each time it's used right?" Taylor asked

"That's right" Tyler answered "To be specific, it get's doubled. Starts with thirty, then sixty, one hundred twenty, two hundred forty, and finally four hundred eighty"

"That's... a lot of power" Taylor gulped

"Mawile could've possible took it but with all that damage it took with Magnemite, especially that close range Thunder Shock, I'm not so sure" Tyler said

"Did Thunder Shock hurt Mawile that much?" Taylor asked

"Yeah. Mawile's is resistant to a lot of typing but Electric, Fighting, Water, Ghost, and Steel do normal damage" Tyler explained

"What would be super effective?"

"Fire and Ground" Tyler shrugged

"You sure know a lot of stuff" Taylor smiled

"I like to read" Tyler smirked

Back on the battlefield Slakoth had just been sent flying by Voltorb's Rollout. Out of nowhere, Voltorb was suddenly covered in lightning. It was using Charge. Even though Charge isn't a move that's damages opponent's, Wattson found a way to do just that. Together with his Rollout and Charge combination Voltorb defeated Slakoth

"Slakoth is unable to battle! Voltorb wins!" the referee called

I held up the Pokeball "Slakoth, return"

After I called Slakoth back I sent Mawile back out

"Mawile again? But she's so hurt" Taylor commented

"I'm sure Malik has a plan" Tyler replied

Voltorb went into another Rollout, more powerful than the last

"Bite!" I yelled

Mawile brought her jaws in front of her and opened them. Voltrob rolled right into Mawile's jaws and she bit down on it to stop Voltorb in it's place

"Fairy Wind!"

Still holding Voltorb, Mawile trapped it in the sparkling vortex. Voltorb was finally blasted out of battle

The ref made his call "Voltorb is unable to battle! Mawile wins!"

"That's one way to stop a Rollout" Tyler smirked

"One more wins and Malik gets his badge" Taylor smiled

Wattson sent out his last Pokemon, it looked like three Magnemite stuck together. I immediately took my Pokedex

 _"Magneton, the Magnet Pokemon. The stronger electromagnetic waves from the three linked Magnemite are enough to dry out surrounding moisture"_

I saw how exhausted Mawile looked so I called her back but she refused

"Huh? Why?" I wondered

Mawile faced me "Mawile!"

I don't know what it was but I could tell what Mawile was trying to tell me. She knew even if she went back she wouldn't last long in the next fight so she decided to do as much damage as she could now

"Mawile you are something else" I smirked to myself "Alright, I hear ya!"

Mawile made her signature face and glared at Magneton

"Use Bite!" I yelled

"Supersonic" Wattson said

Magneton let out a pulse that made Mawile stumble around. I tried to direct Mawile so she could attack but she didn't understand

"Mawile focus. Fairy Wind!"

Mawile managed to set her eyes on her opponent, but before she could launch her attack traces of electricity surfaced all over her

"Oh man... I forgot she was paralyzed" I growled

"Magnet Bomb!" Wattson ordered

Magnemite blasted my partner with concentrated energy, knocking her out of battle

"Ma...wile..." Mawile whimpered in her unconscious state

I ran up and picked Mawile off the ground "Sorry Mawile"

Mawile woke up and looked at me with soft eyes "Wile"

I sat Mawile against the wall and took out a Pokeball "Don't worry. This isn't over yet. He isn't my heavy-hitter but he won't go down easy either. Seedot! Keep it going!"

I threw the ball in the air and the little Acorn Pokemon came onto the field "Dot!"

Ouf of nowhere Seedot started doing backflips in that spot

"What's with Seedot?" Tyler wondered

"Don't know. Malik said he's been doing that all day" Taylor answered "I hope he's okay"

"Still got all that energy huh? Well maybe we can use it" I smirked

"Supersonic!" Wattson ordered

Without warning Magneton sent out it's attack. I didn't even have to say anything as Seedot quickly jumped out of the way

"Thunder Shock!" Wattson told his Pokemon

"Bide!" I told mine

Seedot stood his ground and took the blast. Usually Seedot waits before attacking but being so hyper caused him to release the energy early. Despite being a Normal type move, Bide actually looked like it did some damage when it made contact

"Mawile!" my partner cheered

"Nice Seedot!" I smiled and noticed Seedot stopped moving all together "Seedot?"

Seedot just stood there for a second before suddenly emiting a bright light causing everyone to cover their eyes

"Bright..!" "Mawile!" my partner and I winced trying not to get blinded

The little acorn started to evolve. Seedot got taller, grew limbs, a pointy nose, and a leaf on the top of his head. When the light show was over a whole new Pokemon was standing in the spot

"Nuz!" the creature yelled

"Seedot?" I mumbled and took out my Pokedex again

 _"Nuzleaf, the Wily Pokemon. It lives deep in forests. With the leaf on it's head, it makes a flute whose song makes liseners uneasy"_

"Seedot... I mean, Nuzleaf! You evolved!" I smiled

"Nuzleaf!" my evolve friend grinned

"So that's why Seedot had all that energy" Taylor giggled

"Seedot must've felt what was coming" Tyler laughed

I looked at my Pokedex "Cool. A new form and some new moves. Nuzleaf, let's do this!"

"Leaf!"

"Razor Leaf!" I called out

Nuzleaf swung his head and sent sharp leaf projectiles at Magneton but missed when Magnet Pokemon broke apart to dodge and then got back together

"Pound!" I commanded

Nuzleaf shot forward and punched Magneton

"Thunder Shock!" Wattson called out

Magneton blasted Nuzleaf with eletricity

"Nuz!" Nuzleaf winced

"Bide!"

Nuzleaf started to take the attack but was also starting to get pushed back. When the attack was over Nuzleaf was panting

"Thunder Shock again!"

I gasped "Nuzleaf, do it now!"

Nuzleaf blasted the energy causing the clashing attacks to explode

"Supersonic!"

I told Nuzleaf to get out of the way but it was too late, Supersonic made contact causing Nuzleaf to rock back and forth

"Magnet Bomb!" Wattson yelled

"MAG!" Magneton charged up

"Nuzleaf you have to focus!" I pleaded

Nuzleaf held his head trying to concentrate. Magneton finished charging up and hammered Nuzleaf with the energy

"Nuzleaf!" I gasped

When the dust cleared Nuzleaf was out cold on the ground

"Nuzleaf is unable to battle! The winner is Magneton and victory goes to Wattson the Gym Leader!" the referee announced

 _ **MALIK VS. WATTSON! WINNER: WATTSON!**_

I ran to my Pokemon and picked him up "Nuzleaf..."

"Your team is hurt. Get to the Pokemon Center immediately" Wattson said walking up

"Right..." I mumbled and ran for the door

"Malik!" Wattson yelled causing me to stop "You've got heart. I'm expecting a rematch in the near future"

I didn't turn around but I nodded and proceeded to run out with the twins right behind me

 _((Hey sometimes you loose. How do you think Malik and his Pokemon will come back form this? Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	14. Bully

_((Quick Recap: Malik challenged Wattson to a gym battle but lost))_

After my defeat, I got my team to the Pokemon Center. We made sure everyone was okay and turned in for the night. The whole night was spent in silence

"Malik?" Taylor asked

I just lied there in my bed. I was upset about my lose and I didn't want the others to see me so down. By morning Tyler had woken up and noticed Mawile and I had disappeared

"Oh no..." Tyler mumbled

"They left a little while ago..." Taylor whispered

Tyler hopped off the top bunk and looked at his sister who was motionless and lying down, facing the wall. She explained that I just walked out at the break of dawn without a word

"Should we go after him?" Taylor asked

"It's his first lose. Let him deal with it his own way" Tyler said

I had left Mauville City and had somehow made my way onto Route 111 without realizing it. Sand blew in face but I didn't care. Mawile didn't seem bothered by it being a Steel type and all. I just wanted some time to clear my head. Ever since I set out on my journey, Mawile and I always came out on top. I wasn't too upset though. Maybe a lose every now and then is just something everyone needs so they're reminded they're not invincible

"Wile..." Mawile whimpered when she saw me looking down

"I'm sorry Mawile" I said

I let Slakoth and Nuzleaf out of their Pokeballs and apologized for letting them down. They seemed to be okay with our loss

"Come on, let's do some training" I smiled getting out of my funk

We quickly took off into the desert like area where multiple Pokemon tried to attack us. We battled our way through Gible, Sandile, Cacnea, and a few other Pokemon. After a little while of intense training we decided to head back. Half way back I stopped

"Guys... Thanks" I smiled

Mawile grinned and punched me in the leg "Mawile"

I started laughing but stopped when the ground started shaking "Huh?"

A heard of Dwebble popped up from the ground right under my feet. The Dwebble took off back into the desert taking me with them but I didn't think they noticed

"Hey!" I yelled trying to get away but fell down and disappeared into a sandstorm with the Dwebble

My Pokemon tried to follow but lost sight of me very quickly. The heard ended up going up a large sand dune causing me to fall off roll onto the ground

"Ow..." I groaned and looked up "Okay, where am I?"

I couldn't see very far ahead of myself but I was pretty sure which direction I came from so I started walking. I must've been walking for at least an hour but I was almost certain I was going around in circles

"Mawile! Slakoth! Nuzleaf!" I yelled hoping my team would hear me

The only sound I could hear was the raging sandstorm

"Oh man..." I sighed and started to walk "I never gonna- Ah!"

After taking a couple steps I tripped into a huge sandpit. I panicked and started running before I hit the bottom. I heard something at the bottom of the pit so I took a look a saw an orange creature snapping it's jaws

"Oh crud!" I gasped and ran faster "Come on, come on, come on!"

It took everything in me but was able to get out of the trap. I was exhausted but I managed to pull myself off the ground and pull out my Pokedex

 _"Trapinch, the Ant Pit Pokemon. It makes an inescapable conical pit and lies in wait at the bottom for prey to come tumbling down"_ the Dex explained

"Inescapable huh?" I smirked "Someone should really update this thing"

I looked back into the pit and saw Trapinch had vanished. It came back up a couple yards away. It looked upset. I got a closer look at it and remembered what the Pokedex said

"Uh... Are you hungry?" I asked "I have a couple berries on me if you'd like"

Trapinch got excited by my offer and quickly ran offer. Trapinch was very well behaved

"You're not a bad Pokemon, you were just hungry. I get frustrated when I'm hungry too" I laughed feeding the little Ground type

Trapinch seemed happy at first but got startled by something burrowed away

"Trapinch? Where'd you go?" I wondered

I felt some type of presense and turned to a sand dune. There was a figure standing motionless at the top. I was certain that wasn't there before

"Hello?" I asked and got a little closer

There was no response or movement. As I got closer I got a better look at the figure. I was finally able to get close and realize it was a tall green Pokemon standing there so I took out my Pokedex

 _"Cacturne, the Scarecrow Pokemon. Packs of them follow travelers through the desert until the travelers can no longer move"_

"Well that's not disturbing at all..." I gulped

Cacturne didn't move an inch so I assumed it wasn't concerned with me. I gave it a second to comfirm that and walked off. I kept turning back to make sure Cacturne was following me, which it wasn't until the last time I looked back and it had vanished into thin air

"It's okay... Calm down Malik... Just because it's gone doesn't mean it has anything to do with you- Whoa!" I gasped and leaned back when Cacturne aimed a Needle Arm at my head

Cacturne had somehow gotten around me in a heartbeat. Luckily my reflexes saved me from, literally, losing my head. I fell back and remembered how Trapinch looked before taking off. Cacturne must've been some kind of, _Boss of the Desert._ Cacturne stood over me and raised it's arm

"Wait! Hold on!" I pleaded

When Cacturne dropped it's arm, something grabbed my shorts and quickly dragged me away before I got hit

"Ahh!" I yelled while being kidnapped for the second time today

I looked down and realized it was Trapinch who was dragging me away. It came back through the ground and saved me from Cacturne by sticking it's head out of the ground and using the strength of any Ground type to borrow threw the ground. That must've been it's way of thanking me for my kindness earlier

"Thanks Trapinch" I smiled at my new friend

We finally came to a stop and dusted myself off. Trapinch was happy to see I was okay

"Hey Trapinch, now that we're friends, could you help me find my team?" I asked

"Tra" Trapinch nodded

I followed Trapinch around looking for Mawile and the others. We managed to get back to the spot where I was taken by the Dwebble but there was no sight of my Pokemon

"Now what are we gonna do?" I asked

Trapinch tilted it's head "Tra?"

I looked around for any clue to where they went but instead I noticed multiple glowing projectiles flying towards us

"Pin Missile?!" I gasped grabbing Trapinch and jumping out of the way

Cacturne walked into view showing us it was the culprit of the sudden Pin Missile

"What is your deal?!" I growled

"Cacturne!" the scarecrow yelled angrily

"Looks like someone wants a fight" I said looking at my suddenly empty arms "Trapinch?"

Trapinch had gotten out of my arms and used Dig to get away

"Hey!" I yelled

Cacturne rushed at me but Trapinch flew from the ground and sent it flying. Cacturne stuck the landing and proceeded to nail the little ant with a powerful Needle Arm

I dove to the ground to catch my friend "Are you okay?"

"Tra..."

Cacturne was about to deliver another Needle Arm but a sudden gust of wind put a stop to that

I recognized the attack "That's..."

Mawile ran up and knocked Cacturne away

"What took you so long, partner?" I smirked

"Wile" Mawile grinned

Slakoth and Nuzleaf came up right behind Mawile ready for the fight Cacturne was offering. Mawile and Nuzleaf rushed ahead to fight the bully. The scarecrow wasn't just strong, it was fast. Slakoth saw the duo getting hurt and used Feint Attack to go ahead and take the Sucker Punch that was meant for Nuzleaf. Slakoth was knocked into the others and causing them to fly back

"Guys!" I gasped

Cacturne used Sandstorm and engulfed my Pokemon in a twister of sand

I put Trapinch down and was about to run into the Sandstorm when I was stopped by bright light. The light looked familiar to me, then I recalled what happened yesterday

"Evolution" I mumbled

The energy blew apart the Sandstorm and a new Pokemon was standing in between Mawile and Nuzleaf. It had white fur, long arms, and a red puff ball in the middle of it's eyes. I immediately took out my Pokedex

 _"Vigoroth, the Wild Monkey Pokemon. It's heartbeat is fast and it's blood so agitated that it can't sit still for one second"_

"ROTH!" my new Pokemon yelled

"Slakoth evolved. And learned a new move" I smiled "Mawile, Nuzleaf, hang back"

"Mawile..." my partner pouted

"Let's do this, Vigoroth!" I grinned

"Vigoroth!"

"Vigoroth, Feint Attack!" I called out

The monkey took off and vanished just to come back and knock Cacturne away. Cacturne used Pin Missile but Vigoroth used his new speed and agility to evade all of them

"Now to test out that new move. Vigoroth, Reversal!" I instructed

Vigoroth drove into the scarecrow with his sharp claws. Since Vigoroth took that Sucker Punch before, Reversal did a lot of damage. Trapinch watched as I lead my Pokemon to take care of the bully. That last attack sent Cacturne flying. The scarecrow decided it had enough and took off into desert

"Alright!" I cheered

Vigoroth jumped into my arms "Roth!"

"Good job buddy" I smiled

"Mawile" "Nuz" the others nodded

Trapinch came over and I checked everyone to make sure they were okay. After a quick check, Trapinch led us towards the entrance of Route 111. Before we got there I realized where we were and thanked Trapinch for it's help

"We can take it form here Trapinch, thanks" I smiled

"Tra?" Trapinch seemed sad at my comment

My team and I were about to head back to Mauville City when Trapinch cut us off

"What is it?" I asked

Trapinch walked up and rubbed against my leg "Tra"

"Trapinch, do you want to come with us?" I asked the little ant

The Ground type quickly stood front and center

"I'll take that as a yes" I smiled and took out a Pokeball "Alright, go Pokeball!"

I threw the ball and Trapinch got sucked inside. The ball shook for a second before clicking letting me know the capture was a success

"Awesome!" I cheered and let Trapinch out "Welcome to the family"

At the entrance of Route 111, the twins were about to make their way onto the path

"Malik's been gone for too long" Taylor whimpered

"What makes you think he's here?" Tyler asked

"We already checked Routes 110, 117, and 118. He has to be here" Taylor replied

As if on cue, I walked out of Route 111 with my Pokemon "Hey guys"

"Malik!" Taylor smiled "Thank goodness. Alright, new rule! For now on, I don't care how upset you are if you're planning to be gone all day you have to tell one of us. Actually... scratch that, just tell me. Effective immediately!"

"Ouch..." Tyler said

Taylor noticed my team had some new additions. I explained what we went through, like Slakoth's evolution and Trapinch joining the crew

"Wow..." the twins said in unison

"With all that I bet you're feeling a lot better" Tyler pointed out

"Totally. I wanna get in a little more training before the day is over but first thing tomorrow, I'm challenging Wattson to a rematch!" I grinned

"Mawile!" "Nuzleaf!" "Roth!" "Tra" my Pokemon agreed

My friends were happy to see me not upset anymore. I was looking forward to battling Wattson again. I won't be defeated again

 _((Time for a rematch! Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	15. Rematch

_((This story has over 1,000 views! I'm so proud of my story. They grow up so fast. Allow me to take a moment to thank everyone. Just a second... Let me process this... Okay I'm ready. Thank you for staying with Malik and the team on this journey. Thank you for keeping this story alive. For the record, I just wanna let everyone know that I'm planning something special that I will explain to you at the end of this chapter))_

 _((Quick Recap: Malik caught a new Pokemon, Trapinch. Also, Slakoth evolved into Vigoroth))_

I did some extra training before walking into the Mauvillle Gym. I saw Wattson waiting for me, standing on the other side of the battlefield

"Malik. Tyler told me you were coming" Wattson greeted

I saw the twins sitting in the bleachers. I sent them ahead so I could get myself mentally ready

"Wattson, thank you for accepting my rematch" I bowed

"Of course. I hope you're ready for me this time" Wattson smiled

"Yes sir!" I nodded "Let's get right to it!"

"Sounds good to me" Wattson

"Does the challenger aware of the rules of this gym?" the ref asked

"Yeah!"

"Understood. Battle begin!"

I took out a Pokeball "Vigoroth! Let's get started!"

Vigoroth came out and stood on the field "ROTH!"

"Magnemite!" Wattson yelled

The Magnet Pokemon came out ready to battle

"I don't get it. Malik has a Ground type Pokemon, which is really effective against Magnemite. Why isn't he using Trapinch?" Taylor asked

"He's planning to use the frustration of their lose to boost their power" Tyler explained

Wattson called the first move "Thunder Shock!"

"Feint Attack!" I yelled

Vigoroth disappeared before he got zapped. Vigoroth reappeared in the air

"Reversal!" I called out

The monkey delivered an effective strike on the magnet, causing it to crash into the ground. Wattson instructed Magnemite to use Tackle so that's what it did

"Vigoroth!" I said

My Pokemon nodded and braced itself as Wattson's Pokemon slammed into him. Magnemite then used Thunder Shock and Vigoroth took the attack again

"Perfect" I grinned "Reversal!"

"ROTH!" Vigoroth jabbed and sent Magnemite into a wall, knocking it out

"Magnemite is unable to battle! Vigoroth wins!" the ref announced as Wattson returned Magnemite to it's Pokeball

"Alright!" Taylor smiled "This is nothing like the other day"

"Malik knows Reversal is a move that grows more powerful the less HP the Pokemon has. That's why he had Vigoroth take an attack or two. Plus Fighting type moves are effective on Magnemite, being a Steel type and all" Tyler explained

I held up a Pokeball "Good job Vigoroth, return"

Vigoroth went inside his little home as Wattson threw out Voltorb

"Voltorb, huh?" I smirked "Alright Mawile, keep it going!"

"Wile!" Mawile went onto the field

"Rollout!" Wattson demanded

Voltorb went into a poweful rotation and went for Mawile. My partner dashed around to dodge as Voltorb went after her

"Does Mawile seem faster than usual?" Tyler asked

"Yeah. Good to know all that special training paid off" Taylor smiled

"Keep it up, Mawile!" I said

She picked up her speed "Mawile!"

Voltorb also got faster as well and was about to hit Mawile

"Now!" I yelled

Mawile jumped in the air just as she was about to fall victim to Rollout

"Fairy Wind!"

"Wile!" Mawile delivered her attack form above

Voltorb was unable defend against the sudden game change. While Voltorb was trying to come back from Mawile's attack she landed an effective Bite. Just like before Mawile threw Voltorb across the room

"Charge Beam!" Watton instructed

Voltorb charged up and fired a laser of electricity. The attack landed before Mawile could dodge so she had to take it

"Mawile..." my partner winced

"Rollout!"

Voltorb slammed into Mawile and it looked like it did some damage. Mawile stumbled back as Voltorb was on it's way back with another Rollout

"Mawile, Feint Attack!" I yelled

Mawile disappeared but didn't come back

"Where'd Mawile go?" Taylor asked looking around

Wattson was keeping his eyes peeled for the Steel-and-Fairy type

I smirked "Bite!"

Mawile dived down from the shadows of the ceiling and dug her jaws in Voltorb

"Rollout!" Wattson yelled

Voltorb tried to spin it's way out of our trap so I decided it was time for my favorite combination

"Fairy Wind!" I demanded

Mawile kept her grip on the Ball Pokemon and unleashed her attack. Voltorb was sent flying across the field and fainting

"Voltorb is unable to battle! Mawile wins!" the referee said

"Yes!" I smiled

Wattson called Voltorb back and laughed "Huh, are you sure you're the same person I beat?"

"Sorry Wattson, he's long gone" "Wile!" Mawile and I grinned

"I figured as much" Wattson nodded and threw out Magneton "But don't think that means you've won just yet"

"I would never. Mawile, return" I said

"Mawile" Mawile nodded and came back to my side

"Calling Mawile back?" Wattson asked

"Yup. There's someone I promised a rematch. Nuzleaf! Keep it going!" I yelled and threw a Pokeball

Nuzleaf came out and stood on field "Leaf!"

"Good to see you again, Nuzleaf. You're looking well" Wattson smiled

"Nuz!" my Pokemon nodded

"Ready, buddy?" I asked

Nuzleaf got a determined face "Nuzleaf!"

"Alright! Nuzleaf, use Razor Leaf!" I called out

To no one's surprise, Magneton separated to dodge. Wattson then told Magneton to use Thunder Shock so I instucted Nuzleaf to use Bide. Nuzleaf took the attack and started charging up

"Supersonic!" Wattson yelled

"Nuzleaf, move!" I told my Pokemon

Nuzleaf flipped backwards to evade the confusing pulse. Magneton used Thunder Shock once more and Nuzleaf stood his ground

"Now!" I yelled

Nuzleaf fired straight upward through the ceiling

"Nuzleaf's aim was way off" Taylor commented

"Doubt it. Don't forget Nuzleaf's signature move" Tyler smirked

Taylor perked up "Oh yeah"

"You know the drill" I grinned

The leaf on Nuzleaf's head glowed as he started charging up energy

"Magneton, Thunder Shock!" Wattson yelled

"Razor Leaf!" I countered

Nuzleaf launched sharp leaves that were covered in energy. The leaves sliced through the Thunder Shock and pelted Magneton

"Solar Razor Leaf!" the twins cheered

"Let's go!" Wattson and I yelled

"Magnet Bomb!" Wattson demanded

"Solar Beam!" I countered

Magneton charged up a huge sphere of power and sent it flying. Nuzleaf finished charging up and fired his laser. The two attacks fought for dominance in the middle of the field

"Come on... Go!" I shouted

Solar Beam ended up winning the the grudge match and blasting Magneton with a huge amount of concentrated energy. Magneton fell to ground and passed out

"Magneton is unable to battle! Nuzleaf wins and the victory goes to Malik the challenger!" the ref called out

 _ **MALIK VS. WATTSON! WINNER: MALIK!**_

"Alright!" I cheered and went to Nuzleaf "Good job, buddy!"

"Nuz!" my Pokemon nodded

Wattson walked over laughing "Well, you certainly know how to come back form a loss"

"Thanks" I smiled

"I'm sure we all know what comes next" Wattson said holding up a badge "It's my honor to give you the Dynamo Badge"

"Thank you, Wattson" I smiled taking the badge from him "Yes!"

"Three badges down" Taylor smiled walking up

"Five to go" Tyler added

"Then it's off to the Hoenn League!" I smiled

We went back to the Pokemon Center and relax before getting back on the road. Tyler and I were having a conversation until Taylor asked me an out-of-the-blue question

"What did you say?" I asked

"What's your dream, Malik?" Taylor wondered

"My dream?" I questioned myself

Taylor pouted "Don't tell me you just set out on a journey just because"

"Of course not. I just never expected you to ask me that. Honestly, it's pretty basic. I wanna be champion. Not just champion of the Hoenn League, but champion of the world" I explained

Tyler started laughing " _Basic_ he says"

"There's nothing _basic_ about that, Malik" Taylor sighed

"Seems basic to me. Yeah it's gonna be hard, of course, but hard doesn't mean impossible" I smiled

"Well there's your answer, Sis" Tyler said

"I guess..." Taylor shrugged

"As long as we're on the subject, what your guy's dreams?" I asked

Tyler lied back on his bed "I'm your best friend, man. My job, or dream in this case, is making sure you don't get into any trouble while you're out here"

"Thanks Ty" I smiled "What about you?"

Taylor looked to the side and blushed "Wh-What he said..."

A little while later Tyler and I had fallen asleep and Taylor was flipping through her little book. She was keeping to herself at first until she gasped at the realization that one of the pages had been torn out. Taylor shook her brother awake to ask about the page

"Page..? You mean your diary?" Tyler asked

"It's not a diary" Taylor growled "But yes..."

"Well I don't know. And who cares? It's not like you put something really bad in there, right?" Tyler chuckled

"Uhh... right" Taylor blushed

"Now go to bed. We're hitting the road first thing in the morning" Tyler said drifting off to sleep

Taylor calmed herself down and decided to go to sleep. She'd look for her missing page in the morning. When it was certain Taylor was asleep, Mawile opened her eyes. Mawile reached into my backpack and pulled out a folded up piece of paper. Mawile had taken the paper from Taylor's book after my Dewford Gym battle. She unfolded the paper and looked it over

 _Dear diary, Malik defeated Brawly today. He and Mawile were totally in sync with each other. I hope he didn't notice but throughout most of the battle I couldn't keep my eyes on the field. I saw the smile on Malik's face and ended missing most of the battle. How long has it been? A few days now? I know after Malik wins the Hoenn League our journey will be over, but that makes me sad. Is it selfish of me to never want our time together like this to end? Is it even more selfish to sometimes want my brother to take off for a little while? Don't get me wrong, I love my brother but what I wouldn't give to have some alone time with Malik. Even a little_

Mawile hid the paper back in my bag and got back into bed

 _((Another chapter come and gone. Let me know how you like Malik's rematch with Wattson. Now, as promised, I'll let you in on what I explained at the beginning of the chapter. What a Pokemon series without a movie? You heard, er... read right. I'm gonna write this story's first movie special. I'm not exactly sure when specifically but you should at least know that it's coming. Tell me what you think. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	16. Growth

_((Quick Recap: Malik challenged Wattson to a rematch and won))_

Today was a pretty quiet. We left the Pokemon Center really early and set up camp in the woods of Route 118. We let out all our Pokemon for some fresh air. I was focusing my attention on drawing up new combos for my future gym battles. While the twins were making lunch Taylor was bugging her brother, something about paper but it didn't involve me so I tooned it out. I noticed Nuzleaf relaxing in the shade of the tree Vigoroth was swinging from while Mawile and Trapinch were sitting on a boulder. Those two have been really friendly towards each other every since I caught Trapinch. I thought about it and came to a conclusion

"Mawile, Trapinch, come over here" I said

The two Pokemon came over to see what I wanted

"Trapinch, are you a girl?" I asked bluntly

Both Mawile and Trapinch nodded causing me to laugh

"I thought so. Sorry to be so nonchalant about that. I just wanted to be sure" I smiled

Trapinch rubbed against my leg "Tra"

"Malik, the food's ready!" Taylor called out

I went over the table while my Pokemon sat near me and ate their own food. I filled them in on the discovery of Trapinch's gender just so they'd know. After a short while, the peace was over

Mawile stood up and glared at some bushes "Mawile"

"What's wrong?" I asked

A figure rushed out of the bushes and zipped past my Pokemon causing them to spin like tops. The culprit jumped on the table and electricity suddenly erupted. The twins and I fell back and got away from the threat. When I got to a safe distance I looked at who was attacking us. It was a little light green hound with yellow details. I was unfamiliar with the Pokemon so I took out my Pokedex

 _"Electrike, the Lightning Pokemon. It stores electricity in it's fur. It gives off sparks from all over it's body in seasons when the air is dry"_ the Pokedex explained

"Ma, Mawile!" my partner yelled

"Hold up, Mawile. Electrike looks like it wants a fight. Let's let our newest family member have the spotlight" I grinned

Mawile nodded and stood aside so Trapinch could fight. Trapinch looked at me to make sure it was okay and I gave her a thumbs up. Trapinch nodded and went forward

"Trike!" Electrike yelled

The Lightning Pokemon stood front and center aiming for a fight. Electrike didn't seem like a bad Pokemon, it just wanted to battle

"Let's do this! Trapinch, Bulldoze!" I called out

Trapinch stomped the ground causing it to shake. Electrike stumbled around and was clearly taking damage. Electricity surged around Electrike's mouth as it ran forward and dug it's teeth in Trapinch. Trapinch just stood there

"That was Thunder Fang but Trapinch is a Ground type. Making her immune to Electric type moves" Tyler smiled

Electrike kicked off the ground and went forward with great speed

"That's Quick Attack!" Taylor pointed out

Trapinch didn't have the speed to dodge so she stood her ground and took the attack. Trapinch skidded back and came to a stop

"Dig!" I instructed

Trapinch borrowed underground and came back up, knocking Electrike through the air

"Super effective!" the twins cheered

Electrike came back from that powerful blow and pulled another Quick Attack

"Time to wrap this up. Trapinch, Rock Slide!" I grinned

"Tra!" Trapinch summoned large boulders that fell down around Electrike

Electrike ran around the rocks as they fell form the sky except for the last one that it crashed through. The Lighting Pokemon shook off the pain and stood up, right where I wanted it

"You got spirit. I can use that" I smiled taking out a Pokeball "Go, Pokeball!"

Electrike was hit by the ball and got sucked inside. The ball shook a few times before clicking

"Alright!" I smiled and picked up Trapinch "Good job, Trapinch!"

The little ant seemed happy to me acknowledging her. Mawile brought over the Pokeball with my new friend inside

"Thank you, partner" I smiled and threw the ball in the air "Electrike, come on out!"

Electrike came out and stood in front of me "Trike"

I smiled and put my fists on my hips "Welcome to the family"

"Good job, Malik" Taylor smiled

"Electrike, I gotta know. Why'd you attack us like that?" Tyler asked

"He was just looking for a fight. I can tell when someone just wants a challenge" I grinned

Electrike nodded at my words. The rest of my team came over to introduce themselves but Electrike brushed them off

"Ma? Mawile!" Mawile quickly grew angry

"Electrike!" the Lightning Pokemon growled back

"I guess Electrike doesn't play nice with others" Taylor concluded

"I know just how to fix that" I punched my palm "A battle!"

"Really?" Tyler smirked

"Yeah. Better yet, a double battle! I wanna show Electrike that he can work with the others" I explained "What do you say, buddy?"

Electrike didn't want to participate in such a battle but he was obeying his new trainer. The twins agreed to my challenge. We stood on different sides of the field and the twins sent out their Ralts. I decided for the duo of Vigoroth and Electrike

"Let's go!" I smiled

"You asked for it!" Tyler grinned "Ralts, Magical Leaf!"

Tyler's Ralts sent glowing leaves at my Pokemon

"Vigoroth, Fury Swipes!" I called out

"Roth!" Vigoroth used his sharp claws to slash through the leaves

"Nice. Alright Electrike, Thunder Fang!" I ordered

"Confusion!" Taylor yelled

Taylor's Ralts made Electrike freeze in mid-air and sent him back

"Disarming Voice!" both twins called out

"RA!" both Ralts let out a loud yell that made my Pokemon stagger

"Stay strong, guys! Vigoroth, Feint Attack!" I said

Vigoroth vanished, came back behind the Ralts siblings and tripped them with a

"Good job. Now Electrike, use Thunder Wave!" I instructed

"Trike!" Electrike hit the Ralts siblings with a paralyzing wave

"Oh no!" Taylor gasped

"Electrike, Quick Attack!" I said

Electrike dashed forward but was stopped by a light too bright to see. I looked ahead and noticed the light was coming from the Ralts siblings

"They're..." Taylor mumbled

"...evolving" Tyler completed

The light stopped as the two of same Pokemon were standing on the field. Just like when she was a Ralts, Taylor's Pokemon was still a different color than the other. I pulled out my Pokedex to get the information I needed

 _"Kirlia, the Emotion Pokemon. It has a psychic power that enables it to distort the space around it and see into the future"_

"Kirlia. A double evolution! Awesome!" I smiled

"Shall we continue?" Tyler asked

"Totally" I nodded

"Kirlia, go!" the twins called out

Tyler's Kirlia formed a dark ball and fired it

Tyler recognized the move "Shadow Ball"

My Pokemon evaded the attack but when Taylor's Kirlia's eyes started to glow the Shadow Ball came back and slammed into Electrike

"That was Psychic" Tyler pointed out

"This just got interesting" I grinned "You okay, Electrike?"

Electrike shook himself off and got ready to attack

"I thought so. Vigoroth, Feint Attack! Electrike, Quick Attack!"

My Pokemon went into action as Electrike rushed forward and Vigoroth vanished

"Psychic!" Taylor ordered

Taylor's Kirlia lifted Electrike into the air

"Shadow Ball!" Tyler said

Tyler's Kirlia started forming a dark ball of energy but Vigoroth came and slashed at Kirlia before Shadow Ball could be fired. Taylor's Kirlia was startled by Vigoroth's attack and broke her concentration. Now free, Electrike resumed his attack and slammed into Taylor's Kirlia with Quick Attack. I was about to called out another attack but Tyler stopped the battle

"I think that's enough for one day" he said

I nodded "You're right"

Taylor hugged her new Kirlia "I can't believe you evolved! You're so strong too!"

"Kirlia" her Pokemon smiled

"You too" Tyler smiled as he admired his Kirlia

I sat next to Electrike "See how well you work with others?"

"Trike..." Eletrike sighed

"You'll come around" I smiled

It had gotten late so the twins and their Pokemon made dinner. After eating I fell to the ground with a big belly

"Ugh... No more..." I groaned

"Malik, if I told you once I told you a thousand times. Don't stuff yourself like that. It's not healthy" Taylor said

"You should really make that more clear... That or not cook as good as you do..." I sighed

My Pokemon started rolling me to my tent as the twins started cleaning up

"So did you find your diary page yet?" Tyler asked

"It's not a diary!" Taylor growled

"Tay, it's a diary" Tyler deadpanned

"To answer your question... No I haven't" Taylor grumbled

"I thought you said there was noting important on it" Tyler remembered

"There isn't" Taylor blushed

"Then why is it so important?" Tyler asked

"It's the princible" Taylor shrugged

"Maybe Malik took it and he knows you like him" Tyler laughed

Taylor blushed and growled at her brother "I don't like him..."

"Taylor, you like him" Tyler said nonchalantly

Taylor got fed up and pushed Tyler down then went to her tent

"Dummy..." Taylor grumbled "Can you believe him? Liking Malik? Is he serious?"

Minun, Kirlia and Skitty were looking at their trainer

She got the idea "Shut up..."

 _((I hope everyone has an amazing holiday. Share the love, appreciate life, all that good stuff. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	17. Change

_((I just wanna give everybody a heads up. A special character will be showing up in the near future. I leave it to you to guess. Have fun))_

 _((Quick Recap: Malik caught an Electrike and both Tyler and Taylor's Ralts evolved into Kirlia))_

It was still early when I got up. I wanted to get in some training before we left but I didn't want to wake the twins so I went to a field with Mawile. I had Mawile try to attack me while I dodged her. I had a feeling my other Pokemon wanted to sleep in so I decided to give them a few more hours. I was going to do the same with my partner but she seemed okay with a little workout. Everything was normal for a little while, Mawile was barely able to hit me with any of her attacks

"Come on! Is that all you got?" I taunted

"Wile" Mawile growled and opened her jaws

"Come on, Mawile, let me have it" I grinned

A small ball of white light with black details formed in the middle of Mawile's jaws. Mawile fired a small laser

"Ah!" I gasped and ducked under it

The beam took out a chunk of a tree causing it to fall over

"Whoa... Alright alright, point taken" I chuckled

Mawile obviously had no idea what just happened "Mawile?"

"Was that a new move?" I asked

"Ma" Mawile shrugged

We rushed back to camp and I forcibly pulled Tyler out of his tent by his sleeping bag

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Tyler growled

"Tyler, Mawile used a new move and I wanna know what it is" I explained

Tyler wiped his eyes and groaned "Ugh... Fine"

"Show him, Mawile" I instructed

"Wile" Mawile nodded and used fired the laser like before

"It's just Flash Cannon..." Tyler deadpanned lying back down only to pop right back up "Flash Cannon?!"

"Flash Cannon!" "Mawile" my partner and I cheered

"When did Mawile learn that?" Tyler asked

"Just now" I shrugged

"That's a strong move. But it doesn't seem that powerful when Mawile uses it" Tyler said

"Well Mawile just learned it. Give her some time to get it down" I smiled

Taylor walked out of her tent and yawned "What's with all the noise?"

I explained that Mawile learned and new move. Taylor just yelled saying that was no reason to wake her up. Taylor was always the type of person to get cranky when she's forced to wake up. It took a while to calm her down but I managed to do so by saying we'd go back to Mauville for a little shopping

"Dude, don't spoil her" Tyler sighed

Taylor and I spit our tongues out at the boy. After gathering our things we made our way back to Mauville City. As promised, I took Taylor shopping which to no one's surprise turned out to be a bad idea. I had to buy and carry everything. We were there for a while but it was okay. We even ran into Wattson for a quick second. After lunch we decided to hit the road again. On our way out Mawile pointed out two guys by the exit. After taking a closer look we saw that they were from Teams Aqua and Magma

"What are they doing here?" Taylor asked

"Forget that, what are they doing together? Don't Maxie and Archie have different ideals?" Tyler wondered

We eavesdropped on their conversation and heard they were going to Mt. Chimney. They took soon after

 _"Mt. Chimney?"_ I thought "I don't like this... I think we should go too"

"You might be right. It might not be a good thing if those two ended up working together" Tyler said

"Right" Taylor and I nodded

We exited Mauville City and headed up to Route 112. We could've taken the cable-car up the mountain but a few grunts were blocking the way

"I guess that's out of the question" Tyler sighed

"Let's just go through the tunnel" I said

We made our way through Fiery Path and to Route 113. We could see Mt. Chimney in the distance and the area was full of volcanic ash. After taking a few steps we heard a loud screech

"What was that?" I asked

"Perhaps that" Tyler said pointed upward and a flying shadow

A large metal bird flew down and blocked our path. None of us could identify the Pokemon so I took out my Pokedex

 _"Skarmory, the Armor Bird Pokemon. It's heavy-looking iron body is actually thin and light, so it can fly at speeds over 180 mph"_

"A Skarmory? Never seen one before" Taylor commented

"Looks like it wants a fight" I grinned "Mawile!"

"Wile!" Mawile ran forward ready for a fight

"Hold it, Mawile!" Tyler called out

Mawile fell down when she came to a stop. She popped back up and yelled at Tyler for stopping her

"Sorry. But I got this one" Tyler said

"You do?" Taylor and I asked

"Yeah" Tyler nodded

"Okay I trust ya" I shrugged "Mawile, come on back"

"Mawile..." Mawile groaned and came back

"Plusle, help me out!" Tyler sent out his partner

"Plus!" Plus stood in front of Skarmory

"Skar!" Skarmory started firing stars from it's mouth

"That's Swift! Plusle, counter that with your Swift!" Tyler instructed

Plusle used his attack the all the stars countered each other out

"Spark!" Tyler called out

Plusle was covered in energy and slammed into Skarmory. The bird shook off the attack and proceeded to use Metal Claw on Plusle but it didn't look like it did a lot

"Plusle is resistant to Steel type moves. Plusle, Thunder Wave!" Tyler said

Plusle paralyzed Skarmory and the Pokemon landed on the ground. Plusle dashed ahead and nailed Skarmory with another Spark

"Now's as good a time as ever. Go Pokeball!" Tyler threw a ball at Skarmory

Skarmory got sucked inside and was finally caught

"Alright!" Tyler smirked

Tyler got his new catch and was congratulated by his sister and me

"Good job, man" I smiled

"Alright, we got a new member of our family" Taylor giggled

We stopped by the Pokemon Center in Fallarbor Town so Tyler could heal his Pokemon and made our way to a path with a bunch of craters in it. At the end of the path was an entrance to a cave so that's where we went. Inside Meteor Falls was beautiful. The landscape and waterfalls just made the place look amazing. That beauty was soon put to an end when we saw some people ganging up on some man. One of them was a slender woman wearing a Team Aqua outfit. The other was a larger man wearing a Team Magma outfit

"Ah man" I groaned "What do these clowns want?"

The old man saw us and ask for our help

"Hang on! We'll take care of these guys!" I called out "Tyler, back me up?"

"You got it!" Tyler nodded

"So even I, Team Aqua Admin Shelly, have been made a fool... Fine! Brats who don't know how to watch their mouths must be punished! I want forgive you if you cower in fear either!" the woman said

The man laughed "Isn't this amusing?! Is it really your intention to oppose me, a Team Magma Admin, just the two of you? Very well then! I'll show you how terrifying adults can be!"

"Tabitha, let's just crush them already!" Shelly growled

Shelly and Tabitha sent out Carvanha and Numel. Tyler and I sent out Mawile and Skarmory

"Aqua Jet!" Shelly yelled

"Flame Burst!" Tabitha followed up

Carvanha got surrounded by water and rushed at Skarmory. Numel gathered flames and fired it

"Skarmory, in the air!" Tyler called out

"Mawile, hop on Skarmory!" I instructed

"Skar!" Skarmory flew up with Mawile to dodge Carvanha and Numel's attacks

"Feint Attack!" I told my partner

"Ma!" Mawile jumped off Skarmory vanishing and came back to knock Carvanha to the ground

"Skarmory, Metal Claw!" Tyler said

The bird slashed at Numel but it didn't do much. Carvanha went to deliver a Bite to Skarmory but Mawile put a stop to it with her Bite. Tabitha saw that Mawile was back on the ground and had Numel use Magnitude. The ground shook violently and Mawile took heavy damage. Without warning, Numel followed up by using Flame Burst. The fireball hit Mawile and exploded causing dashes of fire to fly and Skarmory as well. When Skarmory's guard was down it was pelted with Carvanha's Scald

"Finish them! Lava Plume!" Tabitha demanded

Numel kicked up and wave of lave and sent it to Mawile and Skarmory

"No!" Tyler gasped

I got a sudden small headache "Wha... Ah... Mawile!"

 _"Mawile! Mawile! Mawile!"_ my voice echoed in Mawile's head and her eyes flashed pink for half a second "Wile!"

Mawile opened her jaw and formed a large white ball. Mawile fired an enormous Flash Cannon that blasted through the lava wave and blew Carvanha and Numel out of the battle

"Whoa..." the twins mumbled

I was still rubbing my head until my headache stopped then I looked up and saw the enemy Pokemon on the ground "What happened to them?"

"Are you serious?" Tyler asked

"Yes? You okay, man?" I wondered

"I'm fine. You're the one I'm worried about" Tyler said

Skarmory nudged Mawile who was in some type of daze "Skar, Skar"

Mawile shook her head and came back to reality "Mawile?"

"Did I go too easy on you?!" Shelly gasped

"An unexpected development?!" Tabitha growled

"You little brats... We won't let you get in our way!" Shelly yelled

"Hmph... How do mere children tend to give us so much trouble?" a voice asked

"They're a nuisance, they are" another voice replied

I could've swore time slowed down as I immediately recognized the voices. As expected, Maxie and Archie walked into view. Just like back in Slateport, I felt like I couldn't breath

 _"Come on... Not now... What's wrong with me?!"_ I thought

"You again. You just can't help yourself, can you?" Maxie asked bluntly

"I remember you. I also remember telling you not to get my way again!" Archie yelled

"Archie, we have more pressing matters to attend to" Maxie said walking past me

"As frustrating as that is, it's true" Archie grumbled and walked off to "Another day, boyo"

The Admins snatched a case from the old man and followed their bosses. I suddenly expelled breath as they left causing me to pant

 _"Note to self: Never take air for granted..."_ I thought

We saw to it that the old man got home safely. After that we healed up our Pokemon and got back on the road but there was an awkward silence for a while

"Hey Malik" Tyler spoke up

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember what happened after Numel used Lava Plume?" he asked

"Uhh... Not really. I remember getting a headache, not much after that" I answered

"A headache?" Taylor wondered

"And that was right after the Lava Plaume?" Tyler asked

"Uhuh" I nodded

"And just outta curiousity, do you remember what Mawile did?" Taylor asked

"Mawile?" I looked at my partner "What did you do?"

Mawile tilted her head "Mawile?"

"You seriously don't remember?" the twins said in unison

"Okay, you two are just being weird. Come on, we gotta get to Mt. Chimney" I said walking past them "Hey Mawile, let me ask you something"

"Ma?"

"Do Maxie and Archie... scare you?" I asked

Mawile shook her head "Mawile. Wile?"

"I don't think I am. But I'm something..." I mumbled "I just don't know what"

As I walked I got another quick headache and a ringing in my head. Just like before, Mawile's eyes flickered pink. Whatever was going on with us, it didn't last long and when it stopped it was like we didn't even notice

 _((Next time, to Mt. Chimney! What do you think is going on with Malik and Mawile? Don't be shy. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	18. Showdown

_((Quick Recap: While battling both Team Aqua and Magma, Malik and Mawile were acting strangely. Now the team makes their way towards Mt. Chimney))_

We made our way back to Route 112 and the cable-cars. This time no one was blocking it

"Finally" I smiled

We got into the box and it started to go up the mountain. I looked over at the twins and they looked worried

"What?" I asked

Taylor walked over and started checking my temperature and my eyes

"May I ask what you're doing?" I asked in the middle of my check-up

"Just checking something" Taylor deadpanned

Mawile didn't like that Taylor was being so odd so she pushed the girl away "Wile!"

"Easy, buddy" I said causing Mawile to pout "Guys, what's going on?"

"I think something is going on with you two" Tyler spoke up

"Two? Mawile too?" I wondered

"Something's happening with you and it's obviously effecting Mawile as well. I know right now Maxie and Archie are our priority but after that we're giving a call to Prof. Birch. Period" Tyler put his foot down

I know I couldn't change his mind and nodded "Okay"

"And your mom" Taylor said

"What?!" I gasped

"She has to know too, Malik" Taylor glared "Who knows, maybe she knows something"

"You just don't go to a man's mother like that..." I pouted

The cable-car stopped when we reached the top. Since we had to deal with both Maxie and Archie we planned to split-up and taken them out. The divide-and-conquer technique. I was about to get off but Taylor stopped me. I looked at her as she looked down

"Taylor?" I mumbled

"Listen... to me" Taylor demanded "If anything happens... If anything feels off in any way... Come find me"

I rubbed my head "Taylor, I-"

"Don't argue with me!" Taylor yelled

Taylor flipped her hair out of her face and stormed off

Tyler walked up next to me "Wow..."

"Dude..." I gulped "What's with her?"

Tyler patted me on the back "I don't know but you better do what she says"

We left the station and got a good look at Mt. Chimney

"Never been on top of a volcano before" I commented

"Me neither" Tyler replied

Taylor was silent as we made our way up. Something told me to just give her space. I told the twins I'd go to the top while they dealt with whoever was around the area. I took off with Mawile while the twins went in the other direction. It took a minute but Taylor noticed Maxie wandering around the base of the volcano. It was like he was studying it

"Maxie!" Tyler called out

"You again..." Maxie sighed and noticed I wasn't with them "Where's the other one?"

Tyler stepped up "He's- Hey!"

Taylor pulled her brother back and stepped forward

"Taylor, what are you doing?" Tyler asked

"I got him. You take care of of the grunts crawling around here" Taylor said

Tyler decided to let Taylor do what she thought was best. The brother told his sister to be careful and left

"You're gonna pay" Taylor glared and took out a Pokeball

"Am I?" Maxie asked

"Everything was fine until you came along" Taylor explained "Now I'm gonna set everything right! Skitty, please help!"

"Skit!" Skitty came out of the ball and got ready for a battle

"So be it. Houndoom!" Maxie threw out the hound "Use Fire Fang"

Houndoom's mouth was engulfed in fire and it rushed at Skitty

"Double Slap!" Taylor yelled

Skitty evaded the flames and started slapping Mightyena with her tail

"Flame Charge" Maxie countered

Houndoom slammed into Skitty with fire and sent her back

"Skitty, are you okay?" Taylor gasped

Skitty shook off the hit "Skit!"

"Bite" Maxie said

Houndoom rushed ahead with it's sharp teeth

"Skitty, Double Slap!" Taylor pleaded

Skitty went for her attack but was caught in Houndoom's teeth. The hound threw Skitty into a wall

"Flame Charge" Maxie instructed

"Come on, Skitty. Wake-Up Slap!" Taylor yelled

Skitty came back and delivered a powerful hit to Mightyena, knocking it out of battle. Maxie returned the hound and sent out Swellow. Taylor saw how tired Skitty looked so switched her out and sent in Minun. Without hesitation, Minun collided with Swellow with Spark but Swellow brushed it off

"Quick Attack!" Taylor glared

"Double Team" Maxie countered

"Swellow!" Swellow created multiple copies of itself

"Min!" Minun sped ahead but missed the real Swellow

Maxie smirked "Wing Attack"

Swellow pelted Minun with it's glowing wing and sent him back

"Air Slash" Maxie commanded

"Dodge and use Thunder Wave!" Taylor said

Minun jumped out off a wall to evade the sharp wind and paralyzed Swellow

"Spark!" Taylor called out

"Min!" Minun blasted Swellow out of battle

"How dare you..." Maxie glared "You've forced my hand. Camerupt!"

The large camel came out and made the ground shake

"Minun, come back" Taylor instructed

Minun came back next to his trainer

"Kirlia, please help!" Taylor called out

"Kirlia" Taylor's Pokemon said softly

"Earth Power!" Maxie grunted

The ground under Kirlia split open but Kirlia jumped out of the way before getting blasted

"Kirlia, Disarming Voice!" Taylor said

Kirlia took a breath and let out a loud scream "KIR!"

Camerupt was pelted with soundwaves and stumbled back

"Magical Leaf!" Taylor followed up

"Flame Burst!" Maxie counterd

The fireball burned through the leaves and exploded when it hit Kirlia

"Earth Power!" Maxie said

"Teleport!" Taylor said quickly

Kirlia vanished as the ground shot up. She came back a few feet away

"Enough! Lava Plume!" Maxie yelled

"Rupt!" Camerupt sent a large wave of lava at Kirlia

"Psychic!" Taylor instructed

"Kir!" Kirlia telekinetically sent the wave back to where it came

Camerupt was hit by it's own move and fell out

"Yes!" Taylor smiled

Maxie returned Camerupt to it's Pokeball and looked down "Defeated... by a little girl"

"Hey!" Taylor gasped

"I'll accept my defeat this time, girl. But next time you might not be as lucky" Maxie grumbled walking off

Taylor looked at the top of the volcano "So if Maxie's here, that means Archie's..."

At the top of Mt. Chimney I stood on the edge of the volcano with Mawile "I guess you're my opponent today"

Archie was standing on the metal bridge over the lava next to some machine "So you followed us all the way up here, have ye, boyo?"

At first that uncomfortable feeling was starting to flare up but I managed to bury it back inside "I don't know what you're doing but it ends right here"

"Is that right?" Archie grinned

"Yes. It. Is!" I threw out a Pokeball

"Roth!" Vigoroth popped out ready for action

"Mightyena!" Archie threw out his Pokemon

"Vigoroth, Fury Swipes!" I called out

Vigoroth shot forward with his claws ready. Mightyena dodged it at the last second

"Assurance!" Archie yelled

Mightyena slammed into Vigoroth causing him to slide back

"Snarl!"

"Feint Attack!" I countered

Vigoroth disappered before the wave of dark energy made contact and came back to kick Mightyena away

"Reversal!" I instructed

Vigoroth drove into Mightyena with his claws and Mightyena fell over. Archie sent out Tentacool next

"Vigoroth, return" I called my Pokemon and took out a another ball "Electrike, keep it going!"

The little dog came out "Trike!"

"Thunder Fang!" I said

"Bubble Beam!" Archie spat

Electrike rushed with electricity around his mouth but was blown back by the explosive bubbles

 _"Achie's keeping Electrike at a distance"_ I thought "You okay?"

"Trike!" my Pokemon nodded

"Alright" I smiled "Quick Attack!"

"Water Pulse!"

Tentacool formed a small sphere of water and fired it. Electrike rushed around the ball and slammed into Tentacool. The jellyfish wrapped it's tentacles around Electrike before he could get away

"Electrike, quick use Thunder Fang!" I panicked

"Poison Sting!" Archie grinned

Before Electrike could attack, Tentacool pelted him with a barrage of poison darts. Electrike received heavy damage from taking the attack at close range

"Poison Sting one more time" Archie demanded

"Electrike!" I gasped

"Trike!" Electrike unleashed a large blast of electricity

"Discharge?!" Archie growled

Tentacool flew back due to the blast. The jellyfish tried to stay up but collapsed

"Trike..." Electrike limped towards me

I looked at my Pokemon. Electrike had gotten poisoned

I returned Electrike to his Pokeball "Thanks for the help, buddy. Take a good rest"

I looked up and glared at Archie. He was casually tossing a Pokeball up-and-down

"Impressive" he smirked "But this ends now. Sharpedo!"

A large shark came out of it's ball "Sharpedo!"

I turned to my partner "Mawile... let's show him what we can do"

Mawile grinned and stood front-and-center "Wile!"

"Ice Fang!" Archie yelled

Sharpedo's sharp teeth glowed light blue and a cold frost came from it's mouth. The shark rushed towards Mawile with great speed

 _"That's fast!"_ I gasped in my mind

Mawile jumped out of the way but got grazed by the Ice Fang. I saw a little ice formed on Mawile's arm

"Aqua Jet!" Achie announced

Sharpedo was covered in water and shot forward

I growled "Mawile, Flash Cannon!"

Mawile fired her laser but Sharpedo took the hit and nailed my partner

"Mawile!" I gasped

"Aqua Jet again!" Archie commanded

Sharpedo went for another attack

"Feint Attack!" I said

Mawile managed to vanish before getting hit. When she came back to deliver her hit it didn't do much

"Bite!" I instructed

"Assurance!" Archie countered

Sharpedo tried to slam into Mawile but she flipped over Sharpedo's head and clamped her jaws on it's fin

"That was close..." I panted "Mawile almost-"

I stopped in mid-sentence and froze up. I tried to say something but nothing came out

 _"Not now... Not now..."_ I thought

Sharpedo managed to knock Mawile off and she rolled back

"Ice Fang!" Archie grinned

 _"Mawile... Fairy Wind... Why can't I talk?"_ I tried to talk but couldn't

Mawile looked back at and wondered why I was just standing there "Ma- Wile!"

Mawile screamed when Sharpedo landed it's Ice Fang. The attack froze Mawile in a block of ice. Sharpedo went to deliver another Aqua Jet onto my frozen partner

"Ma... Ma... Mawile!" I yelled

The ice around Mawile exploded and she was surrounded by powerful glittery twister

"Is that... Fairy Wind?" Archie mumbled

"MAWILE!" Mawile caught in the vortex and blasted it out of commission

I fell to my knees and grabbed my head "Ah...!"

Archie returned his Pokemon "You win this round, boy. Count your blessings"

Archie took his leave. I looked at Mawile, she was calming down but was still giving out a vicious growl. My vision was really blurry. I took some quick breaths and put myself back together. Mawile seemed to go back to normal when I did. My partner looked really worried like I was. A little while later the twins made their way up to the top of Mt. Chimney and saw me sitting down with Mawile who was sleeping in my lap

"Malik!" Taylor smiled but got worried when I didn't respond "Malik?"

I slowly looked up at my friend and teared up "You guys were right... There's something wrong with me. Whatever it is it's doing something to Mawile too"

Taylor took Mawile form me and Tyler helped me off the ground. The twins took us down the volcano, down Jagged Pass, and into Lavaridge Town. We checked into the Pokemon Center and the twins put me into bed. Tyler took my Pokeballs and Mawile out of the room. I assumed he was going to give them to Nurse Joy to get them healed up. Taylor was trying to talk to me but I couldn't hear her. I was starting to black out in the middle of whatever Taylor was trying to tell me

"Mawile..." I mumbled before passing out

 _((Suspense... Loved it then, love it now! Share your opinion, people. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	19. Aura

_((Quick Recap: Taylor deafeated Maxie and Malik defeated Archie. The team is is currently held up in the Lavaridge Pokemon Center))_

I woke up when the sun hit my face. I looked around and saw I was the only one in the room. The twins and my Pokemon were nowhere to be found. When I got out of bed I noticed I was wearing my underclothes and my outfit was folded up to the side. I got dressed and headed downstairs and saw my friends

"Hey" I said making myself known

Mawile ran over to me "Mawile!"

I smiled and picked up my partner "Hey, buddy. How are you?"

"Everyone's fine" Taylor smiled

"Electrike was pretty poisoned but he's doing a lot better now" Tyler explained and headed me my belt with my Pokeballs on it

"Thanks, man" I said and put my belt on "How long was I out?"

"A few hours. How are you feeling?" Taylor asked

"In a word?" I asked as my stomach growled "Hungry"

"We'll worry about food later" a woman's voice said from behind me

I turned around and saw my mother walking up with Prof. Birch

"Mom? Professor? What are you doing here?" I asked

"Remember? We said we'd be calling them" Taylor explained

"Oh yeah... Well I hate to tell you this but you made the trip for nothing. Bye" I tried getting out of the situation

"Dude" Tyler deadpanned

I sighed and sat down with everyone else when I noticed something, or someone, was missing

"Hey, where's Brianna?" I wondered

"Running an errand for me" Birch answered

"Okay" I nodded

"Now how about we get down to the issue to why we're here" Birch said

"The only thing Taylor said was that it was an emergency and to get to Lavaridge" Mom commented

"Malik, tell them" Tyler demanded

"Fine..." I sighed "I'm sure what but something is happening with Mawile and me"

"Something like what?" Birch wondered

"I don't know" I shrugged

"It happens with both of them at the same time except they act differently. When Malik gets really tired Mawile seems to get really energized. Like the life being drained from Malik and given to Mawile" Tyler explained "It only happens when they're battling though"

"I've never heard of such a thing" Birch mumbled "Let me think..."

I looked over and saw my mother looking down "Mom, you alright?"

"Yeah. I was just thinking we might have a better chance of understanding this if we saw it ourselves" Mom explained

"You think so?" I wondered

"Makes sense. If that's the case then they should battle and I'll study them" Birch said

"What do you think, Mawile?" I asked

Mawile grinned and nodded "Wile"

"Alright, so who's my opponent?" I smirked

"I'm game" Tyler offered

"Actually if it's all the same with you, I'd like to battle" Mom smiled

"You want to?" the twins and I gasped

We left the Pokemon Center and found a battle field. I sent Mawile and waited to see what Pokemon my mom would use

Mom threw a Pokeball "Medicham!"

"Cham!" the Pokemon came out and stood on one leg

"Medicham, huh?" I smirked "So you're battling with your partner too?"

"That's right" Mom nodded

I wasn't the only one in my family who started a journey with an unofficial starter. When Mom was my age her partner was a Meditite. She never told me how they met but I know they've been together for the longest time. Medicham actually used to babysit Brianna and me when we were little

"Long time no see, Medicham. You may be family but I'm not holding back" I grinned

Medicham nodded and got ready for battle

"Battle begin!" Birch announced

"Fairy's effective against Fighting" I said to myself "Mawile, Fairy Wind!"

"Wile!" Mawile jumped up and sent the sparkling wind at Medicham

"Detect and use Fire Punch" Mom said

Medicham dodged the attack like it was nothing and nailed Mawile with her flaming fist

"That was smart. Detect is a move that evades anything" Tyler explained

"Then she followed up with a super effective Fire Punch. They're really not holding back" Taylor

"Bite!" I called out

"High Jump Kick!" Mom countered

Medicham was faster than Mawile and was able to deliver her attack first. Mawile was sent flying through the air

"Mawile!" I gasped

Mawile landed on a tree and jumped back into the battle

"Good job, partner" I smiled _"Medicham sure is something. This is the first time I've seen them battle like this. It's awesome"_

"Focus Blast" Mom ordered

"Flash Cannon on the ground!" I instructed

Mawile fired the laser towards the ground and flew into the air to evade the Focus Blast

"Good! Now Flash Cannon again!" I smiled

Still in the air, Mawile unleashed another blast. Medicham flipped out of the way. When Mawile landed back on the ground Medicham went for another High Jump Kick but Mawile rolled to the side and Medicham took heavy damage

I saw an opening "Fairy Wind!"

Medicham was hit by the vortex "Cham!"

"Good job, Mawile!" I smiled "Let's keep at it!"

"Wile!" Mawile nodded

"I don't see anything out of the ordinary" Birch shrugged

The twins kept their eyes on the battle

"Fire Punch!" Mom ordered

Medicham shot ahead with her flaming fists

"Dodge it!" I yelled

"Don't let Mawile get away!" Mom countered

Medicham stayed on Mawile and kept swinging her punches. Mawile kept evading the swings but was starting to grazed by the fire

I threw my fists in the air "Faster, faster!"

Mawile was somehow getting faster. Medicham almost hit Mawile but she vanished

"Mawile's gone? Was that Feint Attack?" Taylor wondered

"No, it wasn't..." Birch mumbled

Mawile reappeared and started running around Medicham but something was off. It looked like a group of Mawile were circling Medicham

"Double Team?!" Tyler gasped

"That's not Double Team, Mawile's running so fast she's creating speed clones" Birch explained

Taylor looked over and noticed I was panting and bags formed under my eyes "This is it! This is how it starts!"

"Yeah, but Mawile's never gone that fast" Tyler said

"Faster... Faster..." I mumbled "M-Mawile... Bite!"

Without missing a beat, Mawile bit down on Medicham's arm and threw her off the field and into a tree

"Medicham!" Mom gasped

"Ma! Wile! Mawile!" Mawile yelled

"Okay, that's enough" Birch called the match

I put my hands on my knees and was trying to catch my breath. Mom checked Medicham into the Pokemon Center and came back to the rest of us. I was sitting against a tree while Taylor fanned me with some paper. Mawile was still growling and swinging at the air

"Now I see what you meant" Mom said "Malik, are you alright?"

"Define _alright_..." I groaned

"That really was something" Birch commented

"But what was it exactly?" Tyler asked

"I have a theory" Mom spoke up

"I'm all ears..." I mumbled

"Do any of you know about the war that happened over a thousand years ago?" Mom asked

"A war? Oh yeah, I remember Mom used to read us a story about a big battle that happened a long time ago. Remember, Taylor?" Tyler asked

"Yeah, but I thought it was just a fairy tale" Taylor shrugged

"Not at all. Actually there's something I want to show all of you" Mom smiled

We followed my mother back into the Center and over to the computer. Mom typed away and pulled up a picture of a man who resembled me. The man was dressed in some kind of blue and gray uniform. Next to him was a larger-than-life Steelix

"Who's that?" I asked

"That... is Sir Malachi. He's your ancestor, Malik" Mom explained

"My ancestor? What's that gotta do with what's wrong with me?" I wondered

"Well for starters, nothing is _wrong_ with you, per se. You've just following in both Sir Malachi and your father's footsteps" Mom smiled

"Wait... Dad too?" I gasped

I haven't seen my father in years. The last time he was home was a few days before my tenth birthday. Whenever Brianna and I asked where he disappeared to, Mom said he was _following his dream_. Also that he'd be _waiting for us_ , whatever that meant. I barely remember what my old man was into, now I'm following in his footsteps?

"Mom, what do you mean?" I asked

"Malachi was an Aura Guardian, meaning he could sense Aura and control it. You, your father and Sir Malachi have a special trait. All of your Aura are identical" Mom explained

I scratched my head "Our what?"

"Your Aura" Tyler repeated

"What's an Aura?" Taylor asked

"Aura is life. Or spirtual energy if you like" Birch said "Every living thing has it. You can't see it but it's there"

"Okay this _Aura_ thing... If you can't see it how do you know if mine is the same as Dad and Sir Malachi's?" I asked

"Medicham told me after you were born. Some Pokemon can sense the Aura in people and other Pokemon and Medicham is one of them" Mom answered

"But what about Malachi? If this guy lived over a thousand years ago, how do you know he has the same Aura as Malik?" Tyler wondered

Mom explained that Dad has the same Aura has my grandfather. Grandpa had the same Aura has his father, and his father before him and so on

"I'm still confused to what this has to do with my situation..." I mumbled

"Malik, how strong is your bond with Mawile?" Birth asked

"I'm not sure... I'd like to hope it's pretty strong" I shrugged

"Mawile, what do you think? How close do you think you are with Malik?" Birch asked my partner

Mawile had no reaction and just looked at me. I wasn't sure how to feel. Was that Mawile's way of saying we're not as close as I thought? Mawile pulled my shorts to get my attention. When I looked at my partner I saw a large smile on her face, then it hit me. Mawile wasn't saying we don't have a bond, she was thinking it over to make sure

I smiled back at my friend "We haven't been on this journey for very long... But our bond is the strongest"

"Why do you ask?" Taylor wondered

"I think the professor and I are on the same page here" Mom laughed

"Hm?" the twins and I were confused

"Malik, do you think it's possible that you might be transfering your Aura to Mawile in battle?" Birch theorized

"What?" I gasped "How is that possible?"

"How can spiritual energy go from one being to another?" Tyler asked

"Well that's the thing about having a strong bond. Anything is possible" Birch smiled

"Actually, when you think about it, it kinda makes sense" Taylor said

"How?" Tyler and I asked

"Think about it. Aura is life energy, right? Remember how you two always looked? How Malik gets tired and Mawile gets energized? Maybe that's that transfer thing" Taylor shrugged

 _"Does that make sense?"_ I thought "I'm willing to go with that..."

"So that kinda makes you an Aura Guardian, huh?" Tyler smirked

"I guess" I shrugged "What about Brianna?"

"Like almost everyone else, she has her own unique spiritual signature" Mom answered

"I see. So just to sum up... I'm the descendant of an Aura Guardian, meaning I can sense and possibly control Aura one day. Also, since Mawile and I are so close I'm somehow transfering my own life energy to her and that's why she's been so overpowered. That cover it?"

"Pretty much" everyone shrugged

"Okay, one last question. Mom, you were the first one to think of all this. How'd you get to that point?" I wondered

"Oh, that? All I did was think back to when I met your father. He was the same way with his partner" Mom smiled

"Huh?!" the twins and I gasped

"Dad was like Mawile and me?!" I yelled

"Yep" Mom nodded

I rubbed my head and as I got a splitting headache. There was so much coming at me all at once. I sat down on the bench to try to process everything I just learned. Medicham came out to let us know that she was recovered. I thanked Medicham for the battle, thanked my mother and the professor for helping me with my issue and saw the group off

"Tell Brianna I said hi when you get home!" I yelled

Mom laughed to herself and waved "You got it!"

"What's so funny?" I asked myself

"So... how you feeling?" Tyler asked

"Like I need a vacation" I sighed

Oh, I know just the place!" Taylor giggled

We made our way to the spa next to the Pokemon Center. We let out all the Pokemon to relax with us. Tyler and I were on the boy's side with Plusle, Minun, Nuzleaf, Vigoroth, Electrike, Skarmory and his Kirlia while Taylor was on the girl's side with Mawile, Trapinch, Skitty, and her Kirlia. Taylor had the right idea coming here. The water felt like it was actually washing away my troubles. I put a small towel over my eyes and leaned my head against a rock. Tyler did the same

"Hey isn't there a gym in this town?" I asked

"Mhm" Tyler hummed "Taking it on tomorrow?"

"Of course. Now that I know that Mawile and I aren't in any danger, it's time to get back in the game" I grinned

"Show 'em how it's done, man" Tyler smirked

Even though our eyes were covered we simultaneously fist bumped each other

 _((Something tells me a lot of people are gonna hate that big twist in the story but I don't care. Next time, the Lavaridge Gym match! Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	20. Flannery

_((Quick Recap: Malik learned that he was the descendant of an Aura Guardian, Sir Malachi. Also, he that he is somehow transferring his own energy to Mawile through their bond with each other))_

I was doing some stretches in the front of the Pokemon Center. It was early, the sun had just barely rose over the horizon, but I was pumped for my upcoming battle. After a little while Mawile came out and kept me company as I exercised. I told my partner that we should start working on this Aura ideal. I explained that something like that we needed to work out because it was too unstable. After we all had breakfast we went over to the gym. I took a deep breath and walked inside. The entire building was filled with a thick steam. After taking a few steps I fell to my knees

"Malik!" Taylor gasped

"What's wrong?!" Tyler panicked

"Too hot... Too hot..." I panted

Mawile was in the same position I was "Mawile..."

I always hated too much heat, it made me uncomfortable. The cold was a different story, I could handle that. I figured Mawile was in the same boat I was since she was a Steel-type

Taylor fanned herself with her hand "It is pretty hot in here"

"I guess that's another thing you two have in common, you hate the heat" Tyler laughed

Mawile and I groaned at the hot air. The twins helped us to the battlefield where I saw a woman standing on the other side. The woman was slender with red hair

"Hi!" the woman yelled "I'm Flannery!"

"I'm Malik" I greeted "I apologize in advance for being rude, but why is it so hot in here?"

"It's pretty fitting for a Fire-type Gym Leader, don't you think?" Flannery laughed

"And of course it would be Fire-types..." I mumbled "Mawile, you're sitting this one out"

"Wile..." Mawile nodded and sat in the stands with the twins

I reached into my bag and pulled out a water bottle. I poured the water on my head and felt better

"Alright, I'm back!" I grinned "Let's do this!"

Flannery smiled and took out a Pokeball "Oh yeah!"

Flannery threw out a Slugma and the little creature swayed back-and-forth

"Electrike, let's get started!" I called out

"Trike!" my little hound barked

The referee explained the basic gym rules and started the battle "Battle begin!"

"Electrike, Discharge!" I instructed

Electrike unleashed his power and blasted Slugma with electricity

 _"Slugma isn't very fast"_ I thought

"Overheat!" Flannery ordered

Slugma gathered flames around it's mouth and fired the huge blast

"Quick Attack to dodge!" I gasped

Electrike went into the rush and evaded the attack but was pushed by the explosion

I put my arm over my face "Wow..."

"Flannery isn't holding back. Overheat is something you don't want to get hit with" Tyler said

"Electrike better be careful" Taylor replied

"Electrike, Quick Attack!" I said

Electrike rushed ahead with great speed

"No!" Tyler gasped

"What?" Taylor wondered

Electrike slammed into Slugma and sent it back. The hound got ready to attack again but was suddenly engulfed in flames

"Electrike!" I yelled

"That's what I was afraid of. That's Slugma's ability, Flame Body. If a Pokemon makes direct contact, it's gets burned" Tyler explained

"Rock Throw!" Flannery instructed

Slumga formed a big rock and sent it at Electrike

"Electrike, up!" I ordered

Electrike used the rock as a launchpad and flew over Slugma

"Discharge!"

"Light Screen!" Flannery countered

Slugma formed a clear box around itself and halfed the damage

"Thunder Wave!" I called out

Electrike was about to attack but stopped when he fell victim to Flame Body again

"Use Sunny Day and Overheat!" Flannery hollered

The ceiling beamed down an intense light and Slugma unleashed another Overheat but it was bigger than the last one. Electrike was blasted right out of battle. The hound landed right in front of me

"Electrike is unable to battle! Slugma is the winner!" the ref announced

"Electrike!" I picked up my Pokemon and returned him to his Pokeball "Thanks for the help, buddy. Don't worry I'm still gonna win this for us"

"Who's your next choice?" Flannery asked

"Who else?" I smirked and threw out another ball "Trapinch, keep it going!"

"Tra" Trapinch got ready for battle

"This is Trapinch's first gym battle with Malik. I hope she'll be okay" Taylor smiled

"Also, Trapinch is a Ground-type who she has the advantage against Slugma" Tyler smirked

 _"Sunny Day is just gonna make every Fire-type attack stronger so I gotta be ready. Trapinch is really fast in the ground so she'll be hard to hit if she uses Dig. But I still gotta watch out for Flame Body"_ I thought "Trapinch, Bulldoze!"

Trapinch stomped the ground and Slugma winced at the shaking

"Overheat!" Flannery ordered

"Dig!" I countered

Trapinch borrowed into the ground before getting hit. Trapinch came back up and threw Slugma into the ceiling. Slugma fell back down and fainted

"Slugma is unable to battle! Trapinch is the winner!"

"Yes!" I smiled

"Well done" Flannery smiled and returned her Pokemon "But we're just getting started! Numel!"

The small camel came out and took the field

"Use Earth Power!" Flannery said

Trapinch took the attack and stood her ground "Tra..."

"Trapinch, Rock Slide!" I commanded

Trapinch summoned large rocks to fall on top of Numel. The camel dug it's way out of the rocks and used Lava Plume. The wave of lava was huge thanks to Sunny Day. Trapinch used Dig to get away to but was blasted out of the ground when Numel used Earth Power. I noticed Trapinch was starting to look a little worn out

"Trapinch, return. Get some rest, I may need you again" I called the ant back "Vigoroth, keep it going!"

The monkey came out "Roth!"

"Let's go! Vigoroth, Slash!" I instructed

Vigoroth's claws glowed and he delivered a powerful hit. The sunlight was starting to to fade away but Numel used Sunny Day to bring it back

"That's smart. Flannery had more than just one of her Pokemon learn Sunny Day" Tyler said

"That way she doesn't have to worry about her Fire-type attacks not having enough power" Taylor added

"Get in close with Fury Swipes!" I yelled

"Keep Vigoroth away with Earth Power!" Flannery countered

Before Vigoroth could get close the ground under his foot split open and blasted him back

"Lava Plume!" Flannery called out

Numel sent the lava at Vigoroth but he used Feint Attack to dodge. Vigoroth came back behind Numel

I smirked "Slash!"

Vigoroth's claws grew a little longer and blew Numel out of the battle

"Numel is unable to battle! Vigoroth wins!"

Flannery returned Numel and and took out her last choice

"Not bad. You've raised your Pokemon well" Flannery smiled "But your luck ends here. Torkoal!"

A tortoise with smoke coming out of it's back came onto the field

"Torkoal, huh? Let's see..." I took out my Pokedex

 _"Torkoal, the Coal Pokemon. You find abandoned coal mines full of them. They dig tirelessly in search of coal"_

"Let's finish this quick, Vigoroth!" I grinned

"Roth!" the monkey nodded

"Slash!" I instructed

Just like before, Vigoroth's claws grew slightly and he swung at Torkoal but the tortoise withdrew inside it's shell. Vigoroth's claws bounced off Torkoal's shell

"Rapid Spin!" Flannery yelled

Still in it's shell, Torkoal went into a powerful rotation and slammed into Vigoroth

"That was fast!" both twins gasped

"Rapid Spin once more!" Flannery ordered

Torkoal spun again and went at Vigoroth

"Vigoroth, Reversal!" I yelled

Vigoroth hit the spinning tortoise but was pushed back. Torkoal stopped spinning and jumped in the air

"What power!" Taylor gasped

"How can a Torkoal jump that high?!" Tyler asked surprised

"Body Slam!" Flannery called out

Torkoal fell from the air and landed on Vigoroth. When Torkoal crawled off, Vigoroth had fainted

"Vigoroth is unable to battle! Torkoal is the winner!"

"Vigoroth, return" I said "Good job. Your Torkoal is strong, Flannery. This is a fun battle"

"It sure is. But this one's gonna call it" Flannery smirked

"And we're gonna give it our all!" I held up Trapinch's Pokeball and it shined in the light "Trapinch, keep it going!"

"Tra!" Trapinch waiting for my instructions

Flannery looked up and saw it sunlight was getting weaker "Torkoal, Sunny Day"

The light was the brightest than it had been throughout the whole battle

 _"So Torkoal knows it too. Gonna have to be careful"_ I thought "Trapinch, you ready?"

"Tra" Trapinch nodded

"Alright, use Dig!" I called out

Trapinch quickly dug through the ground. Torkoal went into Rapid Spin to keep from getting hit

"Bulldoze!" I ordered

Still underground, Trapinch made the entire floor shake. Torkoal spinning was put to a stop and it took a lot of damage. Torkoal jumped up and used a powerful Overheat on the ground to blast Trapinch out of the ground

"Rock Slide!" I instructed

"Rapid Spin!" Flannery said

As the rocks fell Torkoal maneuvered around them. As the battle went on, an old woman walked in and sat in the bleachers

"Who's that?" Taylor asked noticing the woman

"I don't know" Tyler shrugged

Back on the field, Trapinch had just been blown back by Overheat. Without hesitation Torkoal jumped into the air

"It's going for Body Slam!" I gasped "Trapinch!"

Torkoal came crashing down. When Torkoal moved there was a hole where Trapinch just was

"Trapinch used Dig to get away?" Flannery mumbled "Don't let it get you, Rapid Spin!"

Torkoal spun around to lower the chance of getting hit. I stood there and closed my eyes. I was silent for a moment before opening my eyes

"There!" I yelled

The ground ripped open and Trapinch knocked Torkoal into the air while it was still spinning. Torkoal crashed into the ceiling was carved into it. When Torkoal finally stopped it was stuck in the roof and was out cold

"Torkoal is unable to battle! The winner is Trapinch and the victory goes to Malik, the challenger!" the ref called out

I threw my fist in the air "Yes!"

"Alright!" "Mawile!" the twins and Mawile cheered

"Trapinch, that was awesome!" I picked up the little ant and laughed "I couldn't have done it without ya!"

"Tra" Trapinch nuzzled my chest

Taylor and Mawile ran out of the stands and over to me. Tyler looked around for the old lady but didn't see her

"Good job" Taylor smiled

"Thanks" I laughed

Flannery returned Torkoal to it's ball and walked over to me "That sure was something. Congrats!"

I bowed at the girl "Thank you, Flannery. That was an intense battle. Just the kind I live for"

"I hear that! As proof of your Lavaridge Gym victory, I reward you with this. The Heat Badge!" Flannery laughed

I took my reward "Alright, this badge is mine!"

Taylor looked over and saw her brother looking around "Tyler, what's wrong?"

"Oh, sorry. Good job, dude" Tyler smiled

"Something wrong?" I asked

"There was someone here, some woman. She just disappered" Tyler answered

"An old woman?" Flannery wondered

"Yeah" the twins nodded

"Oh that was just Rachel. She comes and watches the battles all the time. Don't mind her" Flannery smiled

"Got it" we all nodded

"Hey before we leave, why don't relax at the hot spring again?" Taylor suggested

"Sounds good" I agreed

I got my Pokemon healed and met up with Tyler in the boy's side in the hot spring

"Ahh..." I sighed as I sat in the water

"I meant to ask you something. How come you were complaining about the Gym being so hot but you're okay here?" Tyler wondered

"Hey, the springs is nowhere as hot as that place. Plus, this really relaxing" I smiled

On the girl's side Taylor was splashing water on her face. Mawile was floating on the water and quickly turned her attention to the entrance

"What's wrong?" Taylor asked

Flannery came into view and walked into the water "Hey"

"Hello" Taylor smiled

"I hope you don't mind. Coming here sounding like such a good idea I couldn't help myself" Flannery laughed

Taylor giggled "Not at all"

We all stayed in the springs for a little while longer and finally made out way out. I was surprised to see Flannery walk out with Taylor but I didn't mind since we were friends. After exiting the building we ran into someone. It was the woman who watched my battle

"Hey, Rachel" Flannery smiled

Rachel clapped and walked up to me "Marvelous!"

"I'm sorry?" I said

"Your battle. It was very good" Rachel smiled

"Oh. Thanks" I chuckled

"The way your Pokemon battled for you was beautiful. It got me thinking that I can't let a great trainer like you leave empty handed" Rachel explained

"I uhh... already got my badge so, what did you have in mind?" I shrugged

"I run the Pokemon Daycare, you see, and after seeing you battle has shown me you're the perfect trainer to raise the egg I found this morning" Rachel smiled

"An egg?" I asked

Rachel nodded and held out the egg with a glass dome over it

"Are you sure? You don't even know me..." I said

"Flannery, what do you think?" Rachel asked

"I think any Pokemon that joins Malik is destined to go far" the Gym Leader smiled

I turned to my friends "Guys?"

"I think it could be fun" Tyler nodded

"Yeah, and I wanna see what hatches" Taylor agreed

"Guess my hands are tied" I smiled "I'd be honored to take care of this egg and the Pokemon inside"

Rachel handed me the container, thanked me and took her leave

"Check it out, Mawile" I kneeled next to my partner "You're gonna be a big sister when this egg hatches"

Mawile put her hand on the dome and smiled "Mawile"

"Wait a minute, I just realized something..." Taylor mumbled "Rustboro, Dewford, Mauville..."

"And now Lavaridge. That's four badges! Malik, do you know what this means?" Tyler asked

"Four badges?" I asked myself "That means I can challenge Norman! Yes!"

"You know Norman?" Flannery asked

I nodded "Yeah. He beat me when we first met but that was then"

"And this is now!" the twins added

"Well I wish you good luck" Flannery smiled

"Thanks, Flannery. Alright, guys, let's go see Norman! And this time he's mine!" I grinned

 _((Four badges down, four to go! Next time, a little training before the next big battle. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	21. Sibling

_((Finally! It's like everytime I turn around there's some job waiting for me. But I got some time on my hands so might as well throw up another chapter. Oh, and as promised, someone special will be showing up this chapter. Enjoy!))_

 _((Quick Recap: Malik defeated Flannery and earned the Heat Badge. Also, the woman who runs the Pokemon Daycare gave him an egg))_

We decided to spend one more day in Lavaridge before going to see Norman. I sitting cross-legged on my bed wiping off the egg to make sure it was clean as possible. Mawile was sitting next to me watching carefully

"The egg's clean, dude. If you keep rubbing it like that you're gonna crack it" Tyler said reading a book

"Ma?!" Mawile gasped and slapped my hand away "Mawile!"

"I'm sorry!" I winced

Tyler laughed "Hey, on the bright side, Mawile's got the whole _big sister_ thing down"

"I wish she could do that without hitting me..." I pouted

"What do you think it'll be?" Taylor asked

"That's the thing with eggs, it can be anything. Even... Even a Druddigon!" I imagined a huge Druddigon on my team and went into a daze "Man that'd be cool"

While I was daydreaming someone knocked on the door but when Taylor answered it, no one was there. She looked down and there was an envelope on the ground. The girl looked around but didn't see anyone. There was writing on it saying it was addressed to me. Taylor placed the envelope in front of me

"What's that?" I asked

"I don't know, it was outside" Taylor shrugged

"Maybe it's a love-letter. From a secret admirer, maybe?" Tyler grinned

"Really?" I wondered

Taylor snatched that envelope from me "Y-Y'know, I've heard it's dangerous to open random messages that show up outside your door. Very unsafe"

"You say that but... you were the one who gave it to me" I said

"Oh yeah..." Taylor mumbled

There was a ripping sound from me opening the envelope. Taylor gasped when she realized that I somehow got it back

"H-How did you..?!" Taylor stuttered

I nudged my head towards Mawile. She got the envelope when Taylor wasn't looking. Mawile smirked at the girl causing Taylor to growl. Taylor watched me as I read the note and tried to keep her cool

"What does it say?" Tyler asked

" _Meet me on Route 110 tomorrow. Get ready for battle!_ " I read "Someone's challenging me"

"Does it say who it's from?" Taylor wondered feeling relieved that it wasn't a love-letter

I took another look at the letter "Nope. Guess we'll find out tomorrow"

"You're really going? I don't know, man. Maybe it's a set-up" Tyler commented

"Nothing we can't handle" I grinned

The next day we left Lavaridge and headed to our next destination. The twins were still a little nervous on how easy it was for me to agree on a battle when I don't even know my opponent. I just told them since Petalburg was where we were going anyway we'd run into this person regardless. We went through Mauville City and waited on Route 110 but no one showed

"Maybe we're early?" Taylor shrugged

"Maybe they changed their minds" Tyler said

I shook my head "Nah. They wouldn't go through the trouble of challenging me just to back out"

"You got that right" a voice smirked from behind us

The twins turned around "It was you?!"

"I thought that was your hand-writing" I smiled "Brianna!"

My sister walked up with a big smile "Long time, no see, Malik!"

I hugged my little sister. When I put her down, I noticed her sense of fashion had changed. She was wearing a yellow jacket with white leather sleeves, dark blue shorts with tears in the legs and a white ribbon in her hair

"Sorry for not telling you. I wanted it to be a surprise. I even asked Mom to keep it a secret" Brianna explained

"It's okay. So you started your journey? I'm happy for you" I smiled

"Thanks. Even though I hate to spoil this moment, it's time to get down to business" Brianna said

"Business?" I asked

"You remember why you came out here in the first place, right?" Brianna sighed

"Oh yeah! You wanted to battle me, yeah?" I smirked

"That's right. Malik... I challenge you to a battle!" Brianna called out

"Accepted!" I grinned

Brianna and I slid back from each other to give ourselves room for battle. Tyler stood in the middle to referee and Taylor sat to the side and was holding my egg. The little egg wiggled slightly as the battle was about to start

"Let's make this three-on-three!" Brianna announced

I punched my palm "Sounds good to me! Best two outta three?"

"You read my mind" Brianna nodded

"Choose your Pokemon!" Tyler demanded

I took a breath and threw out a ball "Vigoroth, let's get started!"

"Roth!" Vigoroth roared

"Eevee, show 'em how!" Brianna sent out her choice

A little creature with brown fur came out and took the field

"You're a new one" I smiled and took out my Pokedex

 _"Eevee, the Evolution Pokemon. Thanks to it's unstable genetic makeup, this special Pokemon conceals many different possible evolutions"_ the device explained

"Interesting. Hey, just 'cause we're siblings doesn't mean I'm taking it easy on you!" I called out

"Took the words right out my mouth!" Brianna nodded

"Battle begin!" Tyler started the match

Brianna didn't hesitate "Swift!"

Eevee fired off a barrage of flying stars

"Vigoroth, Feint Attack!" I ordered

The monkey vanished before getting hit and came back to deliver his attck but Eevee flipped over him

"Eevee's fast" I mumbled "Good. This wouldn't be fun if it wasn't a challenge. Use Slash!"

Brianna smirked as Vigoroth got closer "Shadow Ball!"

"Ee!" Eevee started forming a dark sphere

"Shadow Ball? But Vigoroth's immune to Ghost-type moves. Does Brianna not know that?" Taylor wondered

Eevee fired the ball at the ground in front of Vigoroth, sending him back

"Vigoroth!" I gasped

"Smart" Tyler nodded "Shadow Ball wouldn't have done anything but different can be said for some flying rocks. Brianna's using her surrounding's to her advantage"

"One more time, Shadow Ball!" Brianna called out

Eevee used the same tactic and blasted the ground. Rocks and shards of the ground flew at Vigoroth

"Fury Swipes!" I countered

Vigoroth knocked the pieces away and got in close

"Reversal!" I instructed

"Quick Attack!" Brianna said quickly

Eevee dashed past Vigoroth and circled around

"Take it!" I yelled

"Roth!" Vigoroth nodded and took the hit in the chest

"Eevee's open! Reversal!" I called out

"Quick Attack to get away!" Brianna panicked

"Too late" I grinned

"Roth!" Vigoroth pulled his claw back and swung with great force

Eevee was blown across the field, right out of battle "Ee..."

"Eevee is unable to battle!" Tyler announced

"Ah man..." Brianna groaned and returned Eevee to it's ball

"Vigoroth's health really wasn't that low but Reversal is a Fighting-type move so it must've packed a punch" Taylor said

"Having Vigoroth take that last attack was just a little insurance for extra power" Tyler noticed "Looks like both of them are using their heads"

"Thanks, Vigoroth. Return" I called my Pokemon back "That's one-nothing, Sis!"

"Yeah, yeah. But I'm just getting started" Brianna responded "Swablu, show 'em how!"

A little bird with puffy wings flew through the air. Once again, Brianna used a Pokemon I was unfamiliar with so I took out my Pokedex again

 _"Swablu, the Cotton Bird Pokemon. For some reason, it likes to land on people heads softly and act like it's a hat"_

"It's so cute!" Taylor cooed

"Hm..." I closed my eyes for a moment "Alright! Nuzleaf, keep it going!"

"Nuz!" Nuzleaf took the field

"A Grass-type against a Flying-type? I hope you have a plan" Brianna chuckled

"Don't worry about us. Right, buddy?" I smirked

"Leaf!" Nuzleaf nodded

"Don't hold back! Razor Leaf!" I instructed

Nuzleaf swung his head and sent the sharp leaves at the bird

"Double Team!" Brianna ordered

Swablu multiplied into countless versions of itself

"Crud..." I mumbled

Nuzleaf's attack missed it's target

"Peck!" Brianna followed up

All of the Swablu flew towards Nuzleaf

"No way to tell which one is the real one... Dodge 'em all!" I said

Nuzleaf took off and was evading the illusions. Whenever a Swablu missed it would disappear

 _"Can't keep this up forever... That's it!"_ I thought "Nuzleaf, spin and use Razor Leaf!"

Nuzleaf jumped in the air and wet into a fast rotation. In the middle of the spin, Nuzleaf unleashed his attack in every direction and blew away all of the Swablu. Even the real Swablu was blasted

"Not bad" Brianna said to herself

Swablu shook off the attack and floated in the air. Nuzleaf landed back on the ground and was panting

"Disarming Voice!" Brianna commanded

Swablu shouted but Nuzleaf took it with Bide. Brianna figured it out that I planned on ending the battle with Bide so she went on the offensive. Swablu pelted Nuzleaf with Fury Attack

"Pound!" I hollered

Nuzleaf punch Swablu and was almost done charging. Swablu flew up and dove down with Peck. Halfway down, Nuzleaf decided it was time

I trusted his judgement "Use Bide!"

Nuzleaf blasted the laser but Swablu used Double Team to dodge. The real Swablu flew low to the ground and delivered a powerful Peck to Nuzleaf. Nuzleaf fainted

"Nuzleaf is unable to battle!"

"Alright!" Brianna cheered "That's one-one, Bro!"

"Don't rub it in" I chuckled and sighed "Nuzleaf, return. Thanks, buddy"

"This decides it" Brianna pointed out

"Yeah" I nodded "Mawile, let's do this!"

"Wile!" Mawile ran out on the field

"Putting it all on your partner, huh? Well that makes two of us!" Brianna took out her last Pokeball and gave it a quick kiss "Combusken, show 'em how!"

What looked like a chicken came into view. It stood there with it's eyes closed for a moment before opening them and glaring at Mawile. For the third time today, I took out my Pokedex

 _"Combusken, the Young Fowl Pokemon. During a battle, the hot flame in it's body increases. It's kicks have outstanding destructive power"_

"Sounds tough" "Mawile" my partner and I grinned

"That means you chose Torchic as your starter Pokemon from Prof. Birch, right?" Tyler asked

"That's right. I just felt like Torchic was the one for me, y'know?" Brianna winked

"I know what you mean" I smiled thinking back on how Mawile and I became partners _"A battle between trainers and their partners, just like with Mom the other day. Man, I can feel myself getting pumped!"_

"I'm ready when you are, Malik!" Brianna said

"I'm always ready! Mawile, Bite!" I called out

"Double Kick!" Brianna countered

Mawile sent her jaws at Combusken as it spun around and swung it's foot. The first kick knocked Mawile's attack off and the second blew her back towards me

"Whoa! The Pokedex wasn't kidding. Combusken's kicks are nothing to mess with" I noticed

"You haven't seen anything yet" Brianna said "Flame Charge!"

Combusken was engulfed in fire and rushed at Mawile. Mawile waited for the right moment and jumped out of the way. Combusken quickly switched up to Double Kick. Mawile managed to evade the first kick and was nailed with the second one

"Did Combusken get faster?" I asked

"Flame Charge raises the user's speed after using it" Tyler explained

"Really? Awesome!" I smiled "Brianna sure chose a cool partner"

"Mawile!" Mawile yelled to remind me we were in the middle of a battle

"Oh right" I chuckled "Flash Cannon!"

"Wile!" Mawile fired her laser

"Flame Burst!" Brianna followed up

Combusken launched a fireball that cancelled out Mawile's attack. In the the explosion, small pieces of fire ended up hitting Mawile

"Ma! Wile!" Mawile winced

"Mawile's really in trouble" Taylor said

"On top of speed, Combusken's got power to burn. Pun not intended. To top that off, none of Mawile's moves are all that effective against Combusken. Malik's gonna have to choose each one of his moves very carefully" Tyler replied

"Flame Charge!" Brianna yelled

"Feint Attack!" I countered

Despite having increased speed Mawile was able to vanish before getting hit. She reappeared flipping at rapid speed in the air

"Flame Burst!" Brianna instructed

Combusken fired the fireball

"Fairy Wind!" I grinned

Still flipping, Mawile unleashed her attack. The usual vortex was changed to a protective dome around Mawile. The fireball bounced off the wind and hit Combusken. Without missing a step Mawile stopped flipping and sent the sparkling wind at the fowl. Combusken was blasted back

I saw an opening "Bite!"

Mawile rushed ahead and successfully delivered her attack but it looked more powerful than normal

"Am I transferring my Aura again?" I asked myself "Hm... I don't feel tired, though"

"Malik, that was Crunch!" Tyler explained

"Crunch?" Taylor and I asked

"Like Bite, but stronger" Tyler shrugged

"Crunch, huh? Well alright! Mawile, you never seize to amaze me" I smirked

Mawile made her signature face at me "Ma"

"Let's keep it up! Use Flash Cannon!" I ordered

"Flame Burst!" Brianna countered

The attacks canceled each other out. Mawile got in close and landed a Crunch on Combusken's arm. The fowl pelted her with Peck to knock her off but it wasn't very effective

"Time for our special. Fairy Wind!" I instructed

Mawile grinned "Wile"

My partner held on to Combusken and started spinning. She spun faster and faster

"Combusken, get out of there!" Brianna panicked

"Do it!" I yelled

Mawile let go of Combusken and sent it into a tree, KO'ing it in the process

 _ **MALIK VS. BRIANNA! WINNER: MALIK!**_

"Combusken is unable to battle! Malik and Mawile win!" Tyler called out

"Yes!" I cheered

Mawile jumped in my arms "Mawile!"

Brianna sighed and called her Pokemon back "Aww, I lost. And you didn't even use your Aura thing"

"You know about that?" I asked

"Mom told me" Brianna answered

"Of course she did" I chuckled

We headed back to Mauville and got our Pokemon healed. After that, we got back on the road

"So, what's next on your agenda?" Brianna asked

"Taking on Norman!" I grinned

"Mind if I tag along? I heard Norman's pretty strong, I wanna see" Brianna said

"No problem" I smiled

"Thanks. Oh, I almost forgot. There's something I've been aiming to do" Brianna said

"What's that?" Tyler asked

Brianna took out her Pokedex and aimed it at Mawile

 _"Mawile, the Deceiver Pokemon. It chomps down with it's gaping mouth. It's huge jaws are actually steel horns that have been transformed"_ Brianna's Pokedex explained

"Deceiver Pokemon? Yeah I'll buy that" Tyler shrugged

"Me too" Taylor grumbled

"Wait, so those jaws of yours are really horns? Huh... You learn something new everyday" I smiled

"Mawile" Mawile smirked and walked ahead

"What's so funny?" we all asked

 _((Next time, Malik's rematch with Norman! Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	22. Norman

_((Quick Recap: The team met up with Brianna and continued on to Malik's rematch with Norman))_

We had finally arrived back in Petalburg City. We stood outside of the Gym as I was doing some stretches

"You ready to take on Norman again?" Tyler asked

"Yeah!" I grinned

I took a deep breath and walked into the Gym with the others right behind me. It looked like a pretty basic dojo. I saw Norman sitting on his legs with his back to us

"Norman" I said making myself known

The Gym Leader stood up and smiled "Malik. I've been waiting. Flannery contacted me, saying you were on your way here"

"Sorry to keep you waiting" I smirked

Norman noticed there was a new face with us "I don't think I've met you"

"Oh. This is Brianna, she's my little sister" I explained

"Nice to meet you" Brianna smiled

"The pleasure's all mine. Just so you know, I'm not gonna go easy on him" Norman pointed out

"Good" Brianna smirked

Norman looked down at Mawile "I hope your stronger than last time"

"We are!" "Wile" Mawile and I grinned

"Then let's get started, yeah?" Normon offered

"Yeah!" I nodded

The twins and my sister took their seats in the stands. Brianna held my egg in her lap as she waited for the battle to start. The ref explained the basics of the Gym

"Battle begin!" the referee shouted

"Nuzleaf, let's get started!" I threw out my choice

"Nuz!" Nuzleaf came out and got ready for anything

"Spinda, come on out!" Norman called out

A small creature with a red spots and swirls for eyes came out. The Pokemon looked like it just spent a few hours on a roller coaster. I quickly took out my Pokedex

 _"Spinda, the Spot Panda Pokemon. The chances of two Spinda having identical spot patterns is less than one in four billion"_ the device said

"Is Spinda okay to battle? It doesn't even look like it can stand up straight..." Taylor mumbled

"It's a Gym Leader's Pokemon, don't underestimate it" Tyler spoke

"I don't know what Spinda could pull so I won't give it the chance to attack. Nuzleaf, Razor Leaf!" I instructed

Nuzleaf let loose a ton of razor sharp leaves at Spinda but none of them made contact. Spinda was spinning and flopping around to evade all of the projectiles

"What?!" I gasped

"You're gonna have to do better than that if you wanna beat Spinda" Norman smirked

"If you say so" I grinned "Nuzleaf, get in close, use Pound!"

Nuzleaf ran forward and swung his fist but Spinda leaned back to dodge

"Again! Pound back-to-back!" I called out

Nuzleaf punches sped up as he tried to land a hit. It took a minute but Spinda was starting to get grazed by the swings. Nuzleaf saw an opening and nailed Spinda in the gut

"Spin!" the panda cried getting sent back

"Not bad" Norman mumbled "I guess it's time to get on the defensive. Spinda, Dizzy Punch!"

Spinda's fist sparkled and it swung at my Pokemon. Nuzleaf put his arms up and blocked the attack but was still pushed back. There was a faint energy around Nuzleaf

"Good job" I smiled knowing what Nuzleaf was doing "But we need more time. Use Pound!"

"Teeter Dance!" Norman ordered

Spinda's body glowed and Nuzleaf stopped in his tracks. He rocked back-and-forth like he had lost it. I felt Mawile bump into me and noticed she was a little disoriented herself

"What's going on?" Brianna wondered

"Teeter Dance confuses all Pokemon in the area. Even Mawile fell victim to it" Tyler explained

"Nuzleaf, get ahold of yourself!" I pleaded as Mawile bumbed into me a couple more times "You too!"

"Thrash!" Norman announced

Spinda froze for a moment then shot forward with a barrage of kicks and ounches. Nuzleaf was blown right out of battle

"Nuz..." Nuzleaf mumbled in his unconcious state

"Nuzleaf is unable to battle! Spinda is the winner!" the ref announced

"Wow" Taylor said

"When they came up with the phrase, _Don't judge a book by it's cover_ , they obviously had Spinda in mind" Brianna commented "You wouldn't think that a Pokemon that could barely stand up straight would be much of a challenge"

"I told you not to underestimate it. A Pokemon that's hard to hit and has that kind of power is definately a force to be reckoned with. Malik's gonna have to think of something fast" Tyler added

"Nuzleaf, return" I called my Pokemon back "Thanks for the help, buddy. Man... That Spinda sure is something, huh?"

"Mawile" Mawile nodded

"Ready to turn this around?" I grinned

Mawile looked at Spinda and gave it one of her devilish smirks. Spinda looked nervous

"Sounds like a yes to me. Mawile, keep it going!" I sent out my partner

"Wile!" Mawile made her way on the field

"Your luck ends now, Norman!" I said

"We'll see" Norman smirked "Spinda, Psybeam!"

"Flash Cannon!" I countered

Both attacks clashed and Flash Cannon was clearly stronger. Spinda dodged the attack at the last second

"Crunch!" I ordered

Mawile went to deliver her attack but Spinda knocked her away with Facade. Spinda came rushing in with Thrash but Mawile used Fairy Wind to counter. The current was too big to evade and Spinda was blown into the air

"Feint Attack!" I instructed

Mawile appeared over Spinda and knocked it back to the ground. Spinda fainted on impact

"Spinda is unable to battle! Mawile is the winner!"

"Is that good enough for you?" Brianna asked Tyler

"It's a start" he smirked

Norman thanked Spinda and returned it to it's ball "Don't let that win go to your head. We're just getting started"

"Don't worry, it won't" I nodded

Norman threw out another ball "Linoone!"

Some type of weasel came out

"Linoone, huh?" I mumbled taking out my Pokedex

 _"Linoone, the Rushing Pokemon. When running in a straight line, it can easily top sixty miles an hour. It has a tough time with curved roads"_

"I guess _fast_ is an understatement" I grinned "Mawile, be on your guard"

"Ma" Mawile nodded

"Use Crunch!" I started

"Headbutt!" Norman countered

Linoone slammed into Mawile in a flash. The attack itself didn't do much but it was still impressive

"Slash!" Norman ordered

Linoone used it's great speed to run around and deliver many strikes to Mawile knowing she couldn't keep up

I looked for any opening then I remembered what I did when we couldn't land a hit on Spinda "Mawile, Fairy Wind!"

Linoone was blasted but took it then went back to using Slash at blinding speed. Mawile was starting to lose all patience

"Mawile, stop right there" I said

"Wile?" Mawile asked confused

"Trust me" I smiled

Mawile nodded and closed her eyes. She stood in one spot and took all of the slashes

"What's he doing? He's falling right into Norman's trap" Tyler grumbled

"What trap?" Brianna asked

"If I had to guess, I'd say that Norman knows Normal-type moves aren't all that effective against Mawile so he's planning to weaken her by using the attack over-and-over" Taylor theorized

"Sounds about right but what's he plan to accomplish by having Mawile stand there?" Brianna wondered

"Who knows with him..." Tyler sighed

 _"I got it... Left arm, right leg, right shoulder, left leg, then the back... Linoone is attacking in a pattern"_ I thought and waited for Linoone to be where I wanted it "Now! Mawile, Crunch!"

Mawile clamped down on Linoone's arm when it was about to slash her on her back

"Linoone!" Norman gasped

"Flash Cannon!" I called out

Linoone tried to get away but was engulfed by the laser and blasted out of battle

"That's two-one, Norman. I already your last choice and I'm ready" I told my opponent

Norman returned Linoone and held up his last Pokeball "I hope so. Come on out, Slaking!"

The large monkey came out and lied on his side

"Slaking! You look well" I smiled

Slaking recognized me and grinned

"Let's go! Mawile, Crunch!" I yelled

"Wile!" my partner nodded and the teeth on her jaws glowed

Mawile bit down on Slaking's arm but it was like he didn't even notice. Mawile used Feint Attack to appear behind Slaking and deliver a sturdy kick but the Lazy Pokemon brushed it off again

"Not like I expected this to be easy, but Slaking is on a whole 'nother level" I gulped "Fairy Wind!"

Mawile spun and sent the wind at Slaking

"Feint Attack!" Norman finally called out

Slaking vanished before Mawile's attack hit. He came back on standing tall on his legs right in front of my partner

"Counter!" Norman continued

"Slaking!" Slaking swung his large arms and sent Mawile flying

"Mawile!" Mawile cried out

"Whoa!" I gasped

"Of course! Norman used Linoone to bring Mawile's health down as much as possible so in case it lost, Slaking could take an attack or two then use Counter, which doubles if the Pokemon using it just got hit. Genius" Tyler explained

"Dork..." Taylor and Brianna deadpanned

Mawile growled and tried to pull herself off the ground "Mawile..."

"Mawile, return" I said

Mawile looked determined to stay in battle. I smiled and nodded letting Mawile know it was okay. Mawile came back and sat next to me

"I wanna keep battling with Mawile but I know someone who would love to claim victory today" I smirked holding up my last Pokeball

"Sounds like fun" Norman nodded

"Vigoroth, keep it going!" I yelled throwing the ball

Vigoroth came and saw Slaking waiting "Roth!"

"Why Vigoroth? Doesn't Slaking evolve from Vigoroth? Malik's at a disadvantage" Brianna said

"I'm sure he has a plan. Right?" Taylor wondered

Tyler shrugged

"Don't hold back, Slaking" Norman said

"Vigoroth, watch out for Slaking's arms" I warned

"Sla" "Vig" our Pokemon nodded

"Feint Attack!" Norman and I yelled at the same time

Vigoroth and Slaking vanished. Parts of the air rippled and I assumed the two were fighting faster than my eyes could see them

"Slash!" I called out

"Hammer Arm!" Norman countered

Vigoroth swung his claws at Slaking but the large monkey knocked my Pokemon away

"Reversal!" I instructed

Vigoroth caught himself and came back and kicked Slaking back about a yard

"Counter!" Norman ordered

"Feint Attack!" I said quickly

Vigoroth disappeared before he got hit

"Now Fury Swipes!"

Vigoroth came back to swing his sharp claws. Slaking pushed it off. The two kept hammering each other with all their might. On the last two Slaking skiddeed back and Vigoroth rolled and flipped away

"Vigoroth is strong" Norman complimented

"Thanks. Slaking doesn't play around. Just as a battle should be" I smiled

Vigoroth and I made eye contact with Norman and Slaking. I don't know how but I could tell all of our breathing were synced

"Let's finish this!" Norman and I called out

"Vigoroth, Slash and Reversal!" I instructed

"Roth!" Vigoroth's claws glowed and grew longer

"Slaking, Counter and Hammer Arm!" Norman ordered

"Sla!" Slaking arm erupted with energy

The two monkeys ran at each other and jumped. They flew past each other and swung their arms at the same time. They landed and stood there with their arms still out

"Well?" Brianna asked

"Wait for it" Tyler said

Vigoroth shook and fell to his knees. Slaking smirked and collapsed just as Vigoroth stood back up

"Slaking is unable to batttle! Vigoroth is the winner and the victory goes to Malik, the challenger!" the ref announced

 _ **MALIK VS. NORMAN! WINNER: MALIK!**_

I threw my fists in the air "Yes!"

Vigoroth ran over and tackled me with a smile "Vig!"

"Vigoroth, that was awesome" I smiled

"Mawile!" Mawile growled

"So were you and Nuzleaf" I laughed

Norman returned Slaking "Good job, Slaking. Take a good rest"

"Norman, thanks for a good battle" I bowed

"No problem. You've come far since that day" Norman smirked

I thought back to the day I met Norman. I remembered how easily he defeated Mawile and me. It was also the day I caught Slakoth

"I err... _We_ really have" I smiled at my Pokemon

The others walked up and congratulated me. The referee made his way and presented the Gym's badge

"Malik, as proof over your victory at the Petalburg City Gym, I reward you with the Balance Badge" Norman smiled

I took my reward "Alright! I'm one step closer!"

We said our farewells to Norman and got back on the road. Brianna said she was gonna head back to Lavaridge to challenge Flannery and and think of a tradegy for Norman's Pokemon

"Thanks for letting me tag along" Brianna said

"No problem. Hey next time we see each other, let's battle" I offered

Brianna crossed her arms "If you say so. But I should warn you, I'll be a lot stronger by then"

"Challenge accepted" I grinned giving my sister a fist-bump

"Oh. Before I forget, I have some presents for you guys" Brianna said reaching in her backpack

"Presents?" Tyler and I smiled

Taylor shrugged and sighed "Boys will be boys"

Brianna pulled out a net bag full of shiny, multi-colored rocks

"What are those?" I asked

"Evolution stones. I have way too many so I thought you guys could use 'em" Brianna explained

"Thanks, sis. You rule" I smiled

"Of course I rule. Where have you been?" Brianna smirked and walked off "Later"

"Bye, Brianna. Be safe" Taylor called out

"All day!" Brianna laughed

A few hours later we were sitting around the campfire getting ready for dinner. The Pokemon were relaxing around the campsite. Nuzleaf and I were sitting by the river with our feet in the water. I heard a soft rattling so I looked to my side and saw the egg shaking in it's case and giving off a faint glow. I called everyone over and Tyler said that the egg was close to hatching

"Yes!" I smiled

My Pokemon looked closely at the egg with excitement that the new member of the family would soon be here

 _((Next time, the egg hatches but... Well I don't wanna give away the surprise so you're just gonna have to wait. Also, I have a request for the readers of this story. I've decided that I want to do the Pokemon League like in the anime not the game. But I will still battle the champion. So instead of thinking of multiple OCs for the League, I want you, the fans, to make your own OC to battle me in the Hoenn League. It's gonna go like this: One one-on-one battle, one double battle, and one full battle. Then it's the battle with the champion. If your interested, PM me and I'll make my final decision later on. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	23. Spooked

_((Quick Recap: Malik defeated Norman and was awarded the Balance Badge))_

The egg shook and glowed for about ten seconds then stopped

"Come on, hatch already!" I pleaded

"Relax, Malik. It'll hatch when it's ready" Tyler said

"Ugh..." I groaned

"Come on. Let's eat and go to bed" Taylor said

"But I'm- Ow!" I winced when Taylor pulled my ear "Okay, okay!"

After dinner we called it a day. I took the egg out of it's case and layed it on a pillow. I passed out with Mawile right next to me. The egg started to shake and glow much more than it did eariler. The next morning I was stirring myself awake

"Morning, Mawile..." I yawned with my eyes still closed

"Ma..." Mawile groaned trying to stay asleep

"So what should we do tod..." I opened my eyes and froze when there were two yellow and red eyes looking at me

There was a creature hovering over my face. It was a dark shade of blue and had pink tips on the end of it's curly locks. There bright pink beads around it's neck. I should lied there for a moment in silence

"AHHHHHH!" I yelled in horror

The twins came out of their tents and looked around to see what was going on. I jumped out of my tent and rolled across the ground with Mawile in my arms

"Mawile!" Mawile growled at me for waking her

"Malik, what's wrong?" Taylor asked

"Th-Th-There's a floating head in there!" I stuttered

"What?" Tyler said looking in my tent "Dude, there's nothing in here"

"Really? Maybe I imagined it..." I mumbled standing on my feet

The creature from earlier poked it's head over my shoulder. Mawile noticed this and looked at it

Mawile scratched her head "Mawile?"

"Oh. Now I get it" Taylor smiled

"Yeah, that makes sense" Tyler nodded

"What does?" I asked

Tyler pointed to my shoulder. I looked over and saw the face from before giggling at me

"AHHH!" I panicked and jumped back "See?! A floating head!"

"Malik, relax, it's just a Misdreavus" Tyler said

"I don't know any Ms. Dreavus" I gulped

"Not _Ms. Dreavus_ , you dork. Misdreavus. It's a Pokemon" Tyler sighed

Taylor looked in my tent and noticed something was missing "Hey the egg is gone. Malik, your egg must've hatched into Misdreavus"

"It's a floating head..." I whispered myself

"It's a Ghost-type. Look" Tyler commented holding up my Pokedex

 _"Misdreavus, thee Screech Pokemon. It likes playing mischievous tricks, such as screaming and wailing to startle people at night"_ the Dex explained

"Huh. I guess your Misdreavus is different because it seems really quiet" Tyler shrugged

Misdreavus flew up to me and looked me over. Mawile got the Ghost-type's attention and tried to make friends. Misdreavus seemed to take a liking to my partner. Taylor thought back to how well Mawile and Trapinch got along and concluded that Misdreavus must've been female. The newly hatch Pokemon got close to me but stopped when she saw the scared look on my face. Misdreavus frowned and back away

"I think you're hurting Misdreavus's feelings" Taylor told me

"I uhh..." I froze up

It wasn't my intention to make Misdreavus feel bad but...

"Drea..." Misdreavus cried and flew into the forest

"Mawile!" Mawile called out trying to stop her

"Malik, how could you?" Taylor scolded "Misdreavus wanted to be your friend"

Tyler thought about how I was towards the ghost and came up with a theory "Are you... afraid of ghosts?"

I looked down at my hidden shame

"You are? I had no idea..." Taylor mumbled

"I can't help it. Every since day I've been scared of Ghost-type Pokemon..." I confessed

 _ **YEARS AGO**_

I was just a little kid. I was chasing a Rattata into the woods because I wanted to play. I lost the Mouse Pokemon and had no idea where I was. I wandered aimlessly around for a while before hearing something rustling in the trees

"Hello?" I spoke up

A Shuppet flew out of tree and looked at me

"Hi. Can you help me?" I asked

A couple more Shuppet and a few Duskull came their way into the area and surrounded me. I stood still hoping they'd leave soon. All of the Pokemon started to grin causing me to get nervous. They all flew around wailing loudly. I ran away but they chased me. The Ghost-types did whatever they could to scare me. I thought I got away but they just left. I leaned against a tree to catch my breath but jumped when I heard a deep groan. There was some kind of spiralling cloud was approaching me. It was a Spiritomb. I shook in fear

"TOMB!" Spiritomb yelled

 _ **PRESENT**_

"My dad showed up and saved me but it was still scary. Those Pokemon chased me into Spiritomb's trap. I had nightmares for weeks" I explained

"That's messed up. How come you never told us?" Tyler asked

"It's not something I like to remember. For multiple reasons..." I mumbled "I didn't mean to hurt Misdreavus's feelings. We gotta find her"

Everyone nodded and we ran into the forest. Mawile and I split off from the twins to cover more ground. Misdreavus flew to a river to get a drink. She was still upset that I was avoiding her so she planned to make this forest her home. There was a stomping sound coming from ahead. It was a Pokemon with two large horns on it's head. It attacked on sight. Misdreavus got scared and flew away but was cornered soon after

"Drea..." Misdreavus whimpered

Fairy Wind pushed the bully Pokemon back

"Misdreavus!" I called out running up with Mawile "Are you okay?"

Misdreavus seemed really confused at my sudden change

"I know what you're thinking and I'll explain later. But now you gotta hide, okay?" I smiled "Leave this to us"

"Wile!" Mawile grinned

Misdreavus nodded and hid behind a tree. I looked at the Pokemon with the horns and took out my Pokedex

 _"Pinsir, the Stag Beetle Pokemon. It grips prey with it's powerful pincers and will not let go until the prey is torn in half"_

"I won't let you bully whoever you want, Pinsir" I glared

Pinsir snapped it's horns at me "Pin!"

"Mawile!" Mawile growled

"Hold it, Mawile. Protect Misdreavus" I told my partner

Mawile pouted and went to tree Misdreavus was hiding behind "Wile..."

"I know someone who hates bullies more than anyone" I grinned "Trapinch, lets get started!"

Trapinch came out "Tra"

"Trapinch, this Pinsir was bullying your little sister" I said

Trapinch growled and got ready to fight. I decided to let Trapinch take the lead in this fight. Pinsir came in with X-Scissor but Trapinch used Dig to evade. Pinsir used Brick Break to break up the ground and Trapinch was thrown straight out. Trapinch stuck the landing and shook the ground with Bulldoze. Pinsir took the hit and the horns on it's head glowed and expanded as it used Guillotine. Trapinch jumped over the attack but Pinsir saw an opening and nailed the little ant with Brick Break

"Tra!" Trapinch cried getting sent into the sky

"Trapinch!" I gasped

There was a sudden bright light. Trapinch was glowing and changing her shape

"Trapinch is evolving" I smiled

When the glowing stopped there was some kind of dragonfly in the place of Trapinch. I immediately took out my Pokedex

 _"Vibrava, the Vibration Pokemon. The ultrasonic waves it generates by rubbing it's two wings together cause severe headaches"_

Vibrava took a breath and fired pressurized air from her mouth. Pinsir was was blown back. I looked through the Dex and it said that move was known was Dragon Breath

"Alright, Vibrava!" I smiled

Pinsir got back on the offensive but with Vibrava's new given speed she was able to evade whatever Pinsir could dish out. I called Mawile over and had my Pokemon fire a Flash Cannon-Dragon Breath combo

"Dragon Flash!" I yelled naming the move

Pinsir was blown right out of sight. Vibrava landed on my head

"Vibrava, Mawile, that amazing!" I smiled

My Pokemon nodded. I went over to tree and called for Misdreavus but I got no response

I sighed and sat cross-legged on the ground "Misdreavus... I'm sorry. I had no right to act the way I did. Please can we just... start over?"

Misdreavus hesitated but came out. The little Ghost-type floated in front of me

"When you were an egg, I made sure you were clean everyday, I checked for cracks all the time and made sure you were safe. Some stupid fear is no excuse for all of this" I pleaded

Mawile and Vibrava talked to Misdreavus. The Screech Pokemon slowly approached me. A part of me was still somewhat frightened but I felt like I was steadily getting over it. I wanted Misdreavus to be my friend. I hadn't even noticed how close Misdreavus had gotten. I held out my hands and she hovered over them

"Are we friends now?" I smiled

"Drea!" Misdreavus happily flew around my head

There was a slight tingle up my spine but I ignored it for my new friend. I knew I'd get over this silly fear sooner or later. Back at the campsite the twins had made their way back

"Do you think Malik had any luck?" Tyler asked

"I hope so" Taylor sighed

"Guys" I said walking up with Mawile

"There you are. Did you find Misdreaus?" Taylor worried

I smiled and held a Pokeball

"Did you..." Tyler mumbled

The ball opened and Misdreavus came out with smile "Drea!"

"You caught her? That's great!" Taylor smiled

"So you're over your fear?" Tyler smirked

Misdreavus nuzzled my face with affection causing me to tremble a little

"More or less. Baby steps, right?" I chuckled "And that's not all"

I let Vibrava out and the twins were clearly surprised

"You've had a day" Tyler smirked

I rubbed the back of my head and smiled "Something like that"

 _((Short but to the point, I like it. Next time, back on the road and we get to see how Misdreavus adapts to the other Pokemon and we see what the little Ghost-type can do in battle. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	24. Courtney and Matt

_((I just saw that this story just hit another thousand meaning I got another movie to write. Luckily, I already got an idea on what to make it about. That being said, of course I have to thank everyone that reads this story. Like I said before, I know this isn't the best story out there but it means a lot that you, the readers, take the time out of your day to follow Malik and his team on his journey. So once again, thank you! Now all that I ask is patience for the second special. I want some specific events to go down before I can put it up))_

 _((Quick Recap: Malik's Pokemon egg hatched into a Misdreavus. Malik scared of his new family member at first but they formed a bond soon after))_

We were still on Route 118. I was stitting on a rock and a part of me was starting to get a little annoyed. Every time I put Misdreavus in her Pokeball, she came right back out with a giggle. She was clearly playing but it was really early for all of this. I barely got any sleep due to the fact that Misdreavus kept waking me up. It's really hard to get some sleep when you have two glowing eyes staring you down

"Misdreavus, please with work with me" I pleaded and returned her again

Misdreavus popped back out and flew around "Drea!"

"Ha..." "Ma..." Mawile and I yawned

"Maybe Misdreavus doesn't like Pokeballs, like Mawile" Taylor suggested

"That's not it. Just look, she wants to play" I pointed out

"Then play. Don't forget, Malik, Misdreavus is just a baby. Of course she wants some attention" Tyler explained

"Hm..." I hummed and let Electrike out "Electrike, play with Misdreavus"

The hound brushed me off and went by the water

"What am I gonna do with you?" I sighed and called out Vibrava "Vibrava, I think Misdreavus needs a playmate. Do you mind?"

Vibrava didn't seem to mind and flew around with the little Ghost-type. I used my rolled up sleeping bag as a pillow and lied on the ground at the chance to catch up on my sleep. The plan went down the when I felt a chill shoot through my entire body. I saw Misdreavus phase through my chest causing me to freak out

"Don't do that!" I panicked

"Malik, Misdreavus has clearly imprinted on you" Taylor said

I covered my face with my sleeping bag "But I'm tired! Don't ghosts ever sleep?"

"I think you just answered your own question..." Taylor mumbled

"I did?" I asked

"Ghosts, dude, they're ghosts. They don't sleep" Tyler cleared up "Actually, I suppose they do... but they don't necessarily have to"

"Well you have to do something. How 'bout a battle?" Taylor smiled

"Uuuuugh..." I groaned "I'm still sleepy"

"Get up" the twins demanded as they pulled me by my legs

I splashed some water on my face and told Misdreavus that we were gonna spar with Electrike. Since Misdreavus was so unexperienced, Electrike didn't want to be apart of the battle but I promised him an extra portion of Taylor's homemade Pokepuffs if he agreed. Electrike went along with my idea but he didn't like it. I told Electrike that he could make the calls for himself while I instructed Misdreavus

"Battle, begin!" Tyler announced

"Alright, Electrike, come at us! But maybe pull your punches a little?" I suggested reminding the hound that this was Misdreavus's first battle

Electrike rolled his eyes and came in with Thunder Fang. The attack looked different. Instead of raging electricity there were just a few sparks. When Electrike got close, Misdreavus shuttered and let out a high-pitched scream. Electrike stopped in his tracks and everyone covered their ears

"Screech..." Tyler winced "So that's one of Misdreavus's moves, huh?"

"Okay, okay, Misdreeavus, stop!" I called out

"Well, it is the _Screech Pokemon_ , after all!" Taylor hollered

The Ghost-type stopped

"How about we use Screech as a last resort? 'Cause seriously, that hurt" I said

Misdreavus nodded

"Alright, what else can you do?" I asked

The spheres around Misdreavus's neack glowed and a wave of energy shot out. Electrike was easily able to dodge it by stepping to the side. Tyler pointed out that the move was known as Psywave. When I asked Misdreavus if she could do anything else she dove into the ground and turned into a shadow. Remaining in her shadow form she went over to Electrike and hit him from below but it didn't do much. Misdreavus laughed and cheered since she was able to land a hit. Annoyed and bored, Electrike hit Misdreavus with a weak Discharge causing Misdreavus to faint

"Electrike" I scolded

"Hmph" the Electric-type looked away not feeling any regret

I picked Misdreavus up "I think that's enough for today"

"At least we know what kind of moves Misdreavus can use. Screech, Psywave, and Shadow Sneak" Taylor said

"Yeah, but... don't you think Misdreavus got a little too excited?" I frowned

"A little, I guess, but this was her first battle and she got a hit in. I'd get excited too" Taylor smiled

"I guess you're right" I nodded

We got Misdreavus conscious and healed up. I told her that she was gonna get another chance to battle which seemed to make her really happy. I was glad to see that Misdreavus liked to battle but it furthered my theory that she gets TOO excited. I decided that Vibrava would be Misdreavus's next opponent. I thought that since Vibrava fought Pinsir for her sister, she'd be more likely to go easy on her

"Okay, Vibrava, you're gonna battle Misdreavus, okay?" I asked the dragonfly

"Vi" Vibrava nodded

"Begin!" Tyler called out

"Bra!" Vibrava instantly unleashed Dragon Breath and blew Misdreavus out of battle

"Drea..." Misdreavus whimpered in her fainted state

"Vibrava!" I glared

Vibrava seemed confused to why I was upset. Then it hit me, I never made it clear that this wasn't a real battle. I took the blame for this one. We got Misdreavus fixed up once again and I apologized for my ignorance. The Ghost-type was starting to get sad. Like she was starting to think she wasn't as strong as she thought of herself to be

"Come on, Misdreavus, how 'bout a battle with Mawile?" I smiled

"Wile?" Mawile gasped

"Drea..." Misdreavus mumbled

She didn't seem so up for that but I was able encourage the ghost. When the battle started, Misdreavus hit Mawile with a Shadow Sneak and Psywave, which really didn't do anything. Mawile looked at me and I brushed the air to signal my partner. Mawile sighed and fell over in _defeat_. Misdreavus flew around with excitement at her first victory

"Good job, Misdreavus" I smiled

Mawile was lying on her side with her head in her hand "Wile..."

Misdreavus yawned. She was tired from battling all day. She phased through my body and rested on my shoulder

"Gah..!" I shivered "I told you not to do that..!"

"On the bright side, she's finally asleep" Taylor smiled

"Take the win, dude" Tyler shrugged

"Yeah, yeah" I smirked and returned Misdreavus to her Pokeball

I went back to do what I was doing earlier. After catching a few Z's we made our way through Route 118 and ran into a familiar face

"Steven!" we all smiled

"My friends, hello" Steven smiled back

"It's been too long. Last time we saw you was back in Granite Cave" Tyler said

I instinctively tuned out of the conversation. Tyler's comment reminded me of something. The dream I had back in Dewford Town. The lava, the ocean, that blinding green light from the sky, and the shadows of those terrifying Pokemon that I couldn't make out. I was on the verge of scaring myself when something caught my attention. It felt like something was coming at us. I looked out at sea and stood on the edge of the bay

"Malik, what's wrong?" Taylor asked

I pointed outward "Look"

The sea was being ripped apart as something flew over it with great speed. Everyone but me jumped out of way. Whatever it was that flying stopped just right before it took me out. The water splashed all over me as the sea went back to it's rightful state. I looked up and saw a mysterious Pokemon staring me down. I was unsure what to make of it but it's wings made be think of a jet

"Latios..." Steven mumbled walking next to me

"Latios? Never heard of it" I said

"Whoa..." the twins whispered

Latios was focused on me. I wasn't sure what to do

"Latios, do you want us to come with you?" Steven asked

"Huh?!" we all gasped

Latios nodded and floated near the ground. Steven and Taylor got on Latios's back while Latios grabbed Tyler and me with his arms. The Pokemon soared into the sky like a rocket and landed on an distant island. It took me a minute to settle after that trip but I came around

I looked around "Where are-"

"WHOA!" a voice hollered

We looked to the sky and saw something dive-bombing the island. It looked like Latios but it was red. Also my sister was with it

"Brianna?!" I gasped

Brianna was safely delivered to the ground and was clearly uneasy

"Brianna, what are you doing here?" Taylor wondered

"Heck if I know! That thing just swipped me off the ground and brought me here!" Brianna snarled "What are you guys doing here?"

"A similiar Pokemon showed up and asked us to come with it" Tyler explained

"You got asked?! No fair!" Brianna pouted

"It probably knew you'd say no, even if it asked" I smirked

Brianna rolled her eyes "Duh, but it still rude"

"Steven, what Pokemon is this?" I asked

"This is Latias" Steven said

"They look alike, are they siblings or something?" Taylor followed up

"Something like that" Steven shrugged "They're known as the brother-and-sister Eon Pokemon"

By the looks of them, I'd guess that Latios was the brother

"Why'd they bring us here?" I asked

"And why'd I have to get kidnapped?" Brianna grumbled not letting her grudge go

Steven went into dialogue saying this island had a strange presense on it. Then he went on saying something about Mega Evolution, which is a phrase I remember him talking about back in Granite Cave. I was about to ask what he was talking about when both Latios and Latias called out and carried Brianna and me into the forest

"Malik! Brianna!" the twins panicked

"Mawile!" Mawile growled and ran after us

"What are they doing?!" I gasped

"I don't know, but see how annoying it is?!" Brianna cried

The two Eon Pokemon dropped us off in a wide field

"What was that for?" I growled

The duo flew to one side of the field and floated there, like they were waiting for something. Everyone finally caught up and Mawile tried to pick a fight with them

"Steven, what are they doing?" Taylor asked

"If I had to guess, they want to battle" Steven assumed

"A battle?" Brianna and I grinned "Why didn't you say so?"

The Eon Pokemon liked that we were on board so easily. Brianna and I called out our partners and Combusken and Mawile got ready for battle. Before we could start, a single member from Team Aqua and Team Magma showed up. The first one was a short girl with lilac hair and was wearing a red jacket with horns on the hood and the other was a large man with a gold chain and a huge grin. They introduced themselves as Admins Courtney and Matt

"Oh come on!" I groaned

They said they wanted Latios and Latias and somethings called _Mega Stones_. I told everyone that I'd handle them but Brianna refused to back down

"Out of the way!" the man yelled

"I ain't moving!" I hollered back

"Malik, I insist that I take care of them" Steven offered

"Don't worry, Steven, we can take care of these clowns" I grinned

Courtney and Matt sent out Camerupt and Sharpedo

"Let's go!" Brianna and I demanded

"Camerupt, Take Down" Courtney ordered

"Sharpedo, Ice Fang!" Matt followed

Both of our partners jumped out of the way. The fin on Sharpedo's back glowed as it went to deliver a powerful Slash to Combusken

"Double Kick!" Brianna called out

Combusken flipped over Sharpedo and knocked it down with a single kick. Sharpedo came back with a powerful Aqua Jet. Combusken took it and was actually able to throw the shark to the side

I growled at Camerupt for trying to engulf Mawile in lava "Mawile, Feint Attack!"

Mawile evaded the blast. Camerupt continued using Lava Plume but switched up to Earth Power after. Mawile was blasted into the air by the rupturing earth. I had Mawile use Flash Cannon while she was still in the air but the camel barely flinched

"I'm not making much of a dent, wanna switch?" I asked Brianna

"Sure" she nodded

"Mawile, change of plans, use Fairy Wind on Sharpedo!" I hollered

"Combuskeen, Low Sweep on Camerupt!" Brianna followed up

Sharpedo tried to use Aqua Jet on Combusken but was sucked into the vortex. Combusken sped up to Courtney's Pokemon and kicked it in the legs. The camel roared and kicked the foul back

Courtney growled "Earth Power"

"RUPT!" Camerupt rose up on it's hind legs and smashed the ground

Multiple spots of the ground exploded and both Mawile and Combusken took heavy damage

"Sharpedo, no mercy, Slash!" Matt yelled

"SHAR!" Sharpedo spun on it's side like a buzzsaw

The attack sent our partners into the air. They came crashing down hard

"Let's end this! Ice Fang!" Matt continued

"Take Down" Courtney glared

The Pokemon came to put the battle to a close

"Brianna. What happens when you mix air and fire?" I asked

My sister seemed confused at my sudden question but grinned a second later "Got it. Combusken, Flamethrower!"

"Mawile, Fairy Wind!" I instructed

The two attacks combined into a sparkling dark pink blast of fire

"Fairy Inferno!" Brianna and I called out

The blast blew Camerupt and Sharpedo out of battle with a huge explosion

 _ **MALIK & BRIANNA VS. COURTNEY & MATT! WINNERS: MALIK & BRIANNA!**_

I smirked and held out my hand "Check"

"And mate" Brianna grinned giving me a low-five

Courtney and Matt returned their Pokemon and retreated

"Tell Maxie and Archie I said hi!" I called out and laughed

Steven walked up and clapped his hands "Well done!"

Brianna and I bowed and held in our laughter. We got Mawile and Combusken healed up and went over to Latios and Latias

"Sorry for the wait, but we're ready now" I grinned

"Finally!" Tyler smiled

"Malik! Brianna! Be careful!" Taylor pleaded

Both Eon Pokemon flew up with insane speed and dove back down. They didn't even touch the ground and I was almost pushed over by the force of the sonic boom

"Let's go!" Brianna and I said

 _((First of all, I just wanna point out the fact that Courtney is straight up one of my favorite characters in the entire Pokemon franchise. I just seriously love her character. Spoiler alert, she and Malik will have a personal back-and-forth in the future. It's gonna be a while, A LONG WHILE, before we see one of my top favorites. You know, I originally planned to end the chapter with Misdreavus falling asleep but it seemed too short so I just kept going. No harm no foul. Next time, one pair of siblings vs. another. Plus another surprise or two. Also, I still need someone for my three-on-three battle in the Hoenn League. Other than that, everything's more-or-less figured out. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	25. Latios and Latias

_((Quick Recap: The group ran into Steven again. Without having the chance to catch up, Latios took everyone to a distent island. If that wasn't enough of a surprise, Latias brought Brianna to the same island. The two Eon Pokemon wanted to battle Malik and Brianna but that was cut when Courtney and Matt made an appearance. They caused trouble but it quickly put to a stop. Now, Malik and Brianna prepare for their duel with Latios and Latias))_

I was getting my head wrapped around the fact that I was face off against not one, but two legendary Pokemon with my sister backing me up. I took some breaths and smacked my face to get myself mentally ready

"You alright?" Brianna asked noticing my actions

"Yeah" I nodded and saw that Brianna's hands were shaking slightly "You?"

"A little nervous, but I'll live" Brianna smiled

"Mawile! Combusken! You two ready?!" I called out

"Ma!" "Combusken!" our partners nodded

Latios made the first move by taking off and using Zen Headbutt on Mawile

"Mawile!" my partner cried

 _"Fast!"_ I gasped in my mind

Latias followed with an effective Dragon Breath on Combusken

"No!" Brianna yelped

"They're so fast" Taylor mumbled

"Like jets" Tyler nodded

"Come on, Mawile, we got this! Flash Cannon!" I called out

"Combusken, Flamethrower!" Brianna followed up

Both Eon Pokemon evaded the attacks and flew around. We tried to watch for some kind of pattern but Latios and Latias were moving too fast for our eyes to see

"I'm getting dizzy..." Brianna groaned

"Fairy Wind!" I growled

Mawile stirred up a vortex but ended up hitting nothing

"If we could just get them to stop for a second" I glared

"Or..." Brianna mumbled

"Or what?" I asked

"If Mawile was a little faster..." Brianna said looking back-and-forth between Mawile and me

I understand what my sister was getting at "No! I don't know what would happen!"

"Don't be baby, it'll be fine" Brianna smiled

I thought it over for a moment "Alright... Mawile! We're taking it up a notch!"

"Wile!" Mawile grinned

I closed my eyes and concentrated. Latios came flying in with another Zen Headbutt but Combusken used Flamethrower to put up a huge wall of fire. It took a minute but I think I figured it out

"Alright" "Mawile" Mawile and I grinned

"Latios! Latias! Prepare yourselves! Mawile and I are on a whole 'nother level!" I announced holding out my fist and punching my palm

Without even looking at me, Mawile was mimicking my movements by punching her palm with determination. Latias charged up a bright glowing orb and fired it. Latios did the same but fired a laser instead

"Latias used Mist Ball. And Latios, Luster Purge" Steven said

Brianna's plan worked, Mawile was now fast enough to evade our opponents' attacks

"Nice!" I smiled "Now, use Crunch!" I ordered

Mawile landed an effective Crunch on Latios. When Brianna noticed Latias was focused on her sibling, Combusken was able to deliver a powerful Flame Charge. Our partners ended up hanging onto the Eon Pokemon as they flew around getting to knock them off

"Flash Cannon!" I hollered

"Flamethrower!" Brianna followed

Mawile and Combusken blasted Latios and Latias to the ground. Mawile's attack was clearly stronger due to my Aura. The two legendaries shook it off and came back with a Mist Ball-Luster Purge combo. Combusken skidded back a bit and Mawile took the blast entirely. I started to pant and sweat so I took off my jacket, leaving on my white T-shirt that had a yellow star on the back

"You alright?" Brianna asked

I felt a little better "Yeah. Mawile?"

Mawile was starting to get a little hyper "Ma! Mawile!"

"So far, so good" Tyler said

"How long do you think that's gonna last?" Taylor wondered

"Hard to tell" Tyler chuckled

Steven was sure not to take his eyes off the battle for even a second. He was thinking of something that had to do with Mawile and me. Back on the battlefield, whatever luck that allowed us to land attacks earlier wore off because Latios and Latias were back to sweeping the floor with us. I focused and sent more energy to my partner. I put my hands on my knees and tried to catch my breath

"Don't push it" Brianna warned

"Don't worry. Mawile, Feint Attack!" I ordered

Mawile vanished so fast that she left behind a sonic boom. Mawile ended up hitting both Eon Pokemon. Brianna had Combusken use Flame Charge to raise his speed. He then unleashed multiple Double Kicks to our opponents. When Combusken was the air, Latias used Psychic to send the Young Fowl crashing into a tree. Latios saw an opening and aimed a Luster Purge at Combusken

"Combusken!" Brianna gasped

"Mawile, Flash Cannon!" I yelled

Mawile slid in front of Combusken and fired her laser "Wile!"

Mawile's Flash Cannon started to overwhelm Latios' Luster Purge but the two attacks ended up canceling each other out. Legendary Pokemon lived up to their reputaton. Even with the extra power, Mawile was still having a hard time. Combusken looked up and saw Mawile protecting him. Combusken growled at the fact he need a bodyguard. After a brief moment of anger, a bright light went off behind Mawile causing everyone to gasp. Combusken grew at least four feet taller and was giving off a powerful source of heat. When the glowing stopped, a whole new Pokemon came into view

"Whoa..." Brianna mumbled and took out her Pokedex

 _"Blaziken, the Blaze Pokemon. It can clear a thirty-story building in a leap. It's fiery punches scorch it's foes"_ the Pokedex explained

"Blaziken, huh?" Brianna smirked

"Awesome" I smiled

"And you learned a new move. Blaziken, show 'em what you got!" Brianna called out

"Blaziken!" Brianna's partner shot off and his foot erupted in flames

Blaziken landed an extremely strong kick to Latios. Steven identified the move as Blaze Kick. Blaziken's new speed was incredible. If I had blinked, I would've missed that last attack. The legendary Pokemon came back with a vengance but Mawile and Blaziken were too fast to get hit

"Mawile!" "Blaziken!" Brianna and I hollered "Fairy Inferno!"

Mawile's Fairy Wind mixed with Blaziken's Flamethrower making for a bigger blast than before. The Eon Pokemon were blown back. Our partners ran off to keep up their assault. I was about to call out another move but something stopped me. I could've swore Mawile's appearance around her body and her horns were changing but when I rubbed my eyes it had stopped

I tilted my head "What was... Whatever. Mawile, Crunch!"

Mawile jumped on Latias' back and bit her wing. Latias threw Mawile off and delivered a powerful Mist Ball. Mawile took it and landed on her feet. Blaziken was running around to avoid being hit. Latios flew low to the ground for an incoming Zen Headbutt but Blaziken back-flipped to dodge. When Latios flew under Blaziken, the Blaze Pokemon shot both of his legs down for a double Blaze Kick. Mawile used used a full power Flash Cannon on Latias. Blaziken followed up with a powerful Flamethrower for Latios. The two Eon Pokemon crashed into other and exploded. Latios and Latias flew out of the smoke and had taken damage. Mawile and Blaziken got ready to continue the battle

"They're doing awesome" Tyler smiled

"Keep it going!" Taylor cheered

"Hm..." Steven mumbled

"LAAA!" Latios and Latias let out battle cries

"Let's go!" Brianna and I countered

All of the Pokemon rushed at each other. Before they got too close, something happened to me. Everything went black and I collapsed

"Ma...wile..." Mawile whimpered and did the same

All of the Pokemon stoped in their tracks when Mawile and I passed out

"Malik! Mawile!" everyone gasped and ran over

Brianna shook me "Malik, wake up!"

"What happened?! They were doing good!" Taylor panicked

Blaziken came over with Mawile in his arms and lied her next to me. Steven checked my vitals and told everyone that I had just passed out. The same with Mawile. That didn't make anyone feel much better. Everyone kept calling for me and Mawile to wake up but nothing worked. When I finally opened my eyes, I immidieately noticed something was wrong. I recognized the setting and my heart almost stopped. It was the nightmare I had back in Dewford Town. The fiery ground and crashing waves were nothing new but the two fighting, giant figures looked different. They were a lot bigger and had glowing patterns all over their bodies. Unlike last time they didn't seem to coming towards me at all. Even though that clamed me down a little, I felt another presense. I turned around and saw the silhouette of a guy and two Pokemon. I couldn't see any of their faces due to the fire and smoke but the smallest shadow looked like it had a leaf on it's head, where the largest reminded me of a shark. The human in between them just stood there with his hands in his pockets. I tried to get closer but...

 _"Malik... Malik..! Malik!"_ a voice pleaded _"Malik, please!"_

Everything crumbled away and I came back to reality. I slowly opened my eyes and saw everyone around me. Even Mawile had woken up and was excited to see that I was okay

"Hey, partner... Guess we overdid it, huh?" I chuckled

"Ma" Mawile nodded

"Malik, I'm so sorry!" Brianna cried "I thought it'd be okay!"

"It's fine" I smiled and sat up "I seriously gotta get that under control. At least I'm getting better, sorta"

"Malik, what exactly was that?" Steven asked

"Aura. I'm just full of surprises, aren't I?" I smirked

"Indeed you are" Steven agreed

I walked over to Latios and Latias "Sorry. I think that's all that I got"

I could tell they were happy that I was okay. Breaking off the battle didn't seem to upset them. After everyone was healed up, Latios and Latias took us back to where they found us, and flew out of sight. I told Brianna we'd see her again real soon and wished her good luck in her next gym battle. When she left Steven said he looked forward to see how much stronger I would become in the future and took his leave

"What a day!" Taylor whined

"Yeah. What do you think they even wanted to begin with?" Tyler wondered "Malik? Hey, Malik!"

I was lost in thought. I couldn't figure out who that mystery person in my dream was. Even though I couldn't figure out an identity, something told me I'd find out soon enough

"Malik, you okay?" Taylor asked

"Yeah" I mumbled

"Mawile?" my partner questioned

I looked up and imagined what I saw one more time "Who... are you?"

In another part of the region was a young man sitting under a tree. He had black hair with blonde bangs and wore a black unzipped jacket with a pointy collar, a dark grey V-neck shirt, navy blue pants, a large belt, and black high top shoes. The boy seemed very relaxed as he sat there with his hands behind his head. The Leaf Pokemon known as Chikorita walked up to him and nudged his arm. The boy gently rubbed Chikorita's head causing the little Pokemon to smile

"The wind changed..." he mumbled

 _((Trust me, all of this comes together in the end. Also, remember how I said that Courney is one of my favorite characters? Well I meant to ask who yours were. Let me know. Who are your favorite characters? Rather in the games or the anime, it doesn't matter. Tell me! Next time, a storm's a brewin'. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	26. Shelly and Tabitha

_((Quick Recap: Malik and Brianna battled Latios and Latias. The battle came to a draw when Malik and Mawile passed out. Also, Malik had another strange dream, this time with a strange shadow in the picture))_

We were walking along Route 119 when we were suddenly caught in a downpour. We quickly stood under a large tree

"Wish I had an umbrella" Tyler sighed

"You were saying?" I smiled as I pulled a large umbrella out of my backpack "Never leave home without it"

Mawile hung on to the back of my head and Tyler stood next to me with Plusle and Minun on his shoulders. Taylor was standing off to the side fiddling with her fingers

"Taylor, come on" I said

"I-I'm fine" Taylor stuttered

"Don't be crazy, you'll get sick, let's go" Tyler replied

Taylor shuffled over but stayed halfway out from under the umbrella. I told her that she'd still get pretty drenched like that and she stood closer to me. She quickly pulled her hood over her face to hide the fact that she was blushing

"You okay?" I asked

"Let's just go" she grumbled

We walked across a bridge and admired the waterfall

"Nice" I smiled

Taylor looked ahead and saw a building "What's that?"

"Let's check it out" Tyler said

When got closer, we saw how big the place was. At first I saw excited but when something caught my attention, I grabbed the twins and jumped back behind in the tall grass

"What's with you?!" they growled

"Shh! Look" I replied

Tyler and Taylor peaked through the grass and saw a few Magma and Aqua thugs standing around next to the building

"Who've gotta be kidding..." the twins sighed

"This isn't good. Should we do something?" I asked

"I don't think we have a choice. Come on" Tyler ordered

When the grunts looked away, we snuck inside the building. On the way in, I read the sign that was outside.

" _Weather Institute?_ " I thought

The woman at the front desk was so terrified that she couldn't speak correctly

"Where are they?" I whispered

The woman gulped and pointed to the stairs. I nodded to the others and crept up to the second floor. I saw a small group of underlings but they weren't the ones I was focused on. It took me a moment to remember but I recognized the ones making the trouble as Shelly and Tabitha

"I remember them" Tyler glared

"So do I" I growled

"So this is the world that'll soon become reality?" Shelly smirked

"We're gonna be late" Tabitha grumbled

"My research! Give it back!" one of the scientists yelled

When the man tried to retrieve his stolen property, Shelly slapped him

"Shut your mouth!" she snarled

"Ah!"

"Malik" Taylor worried

"Yeah. Alright, I have a plan" I said as went back downstairs

"The super-ancient Pokemon. The weather they will bring about by just being awoken will be tremendous!" Tabitha laughed "I just can't wai-"

There was a loud boom and smoke erupted from the stairs

"What?!" everyone gasped

"Don't just stand there, you idiots! Go!" Shelly yelled

"Ma'am!" the soldiers nodded and ran down the stairs where the twins were waiting with Skarory and Skitty

"Hi!" Taylor waved

"How's tricks?" Tyler smiled

The grunts rushed the twins as they quickly ran outside. The woman from the front desk hid Mawile and me as my friends acted as a distraction

"Thanks" "Ma" Mawile and I smiled

"It was nothing. Are you sure about this?" she worried

"Don't you worry, I got this" I smirked

Mawile and I walked up the stairs where I came face-to-face with the duo that was holding the Institute hostage

"'Sup" I spoke up

"Oh, I remember you" the woman glared

"Long time no see" I replied

"Mawile!" my partner growled

"May I ask what you're doing here?" I asked

"Personal business" Tabitha ignored

"Actually, now that I think about it, you're right. I really don't care" I shrugged "Whatever the reason, it ends now"

"Little brat" both enemies glared

Mawile grinned and waved them over "Wile. Mawile"

"I'll show you! Walrein!" Shelly called out

"Torkoal, teach them a lesson!" Tabitha followed

A walrus and a turtoise came into view. I was familiar with Torkoal from my battle with Flanery but the other one was new to me so I took out my Pokedex

 _"Walrein, the Ice Break Pokemon. Not only does it's thick blubber keep it warn, it also protects it from attacks. It shatters ice with it's prized tusks"_

"Got it. It says Walrein's an Ice-and-Water type so... Nuzleaf, let's get started!" I announced and threw a Pokeball

Nuzleaf came out and got ready for battle "Nuz!"

"Mawile, back him up" I said

"Ma!" Mawile nodded and stood next Nuzleaf

I knew this wasn't the best combo, especially with a Fire-type in play, but I had faith in my Pokemon

"Let's go! Mawile, Crunch! Nuzleaf, Pound!" I called out

"Smokescreen!" Tabitha yelled

"Koal!" Torkoal let out a thick wall of smoke that stopped my Pokemon in their tracks

"Body Slam!" Shelly ordered

"Wal!" Walrein flew in the air and crashed down on my team

When Walrein moved, Mawile and Nuzleaf were embedded in the floor

"Ma..." "Nuz..." my Pokemon whimpered

"Body Slam again!" Shelly laughed

"Mawile, grab Nuzleaf and use Feint Attack!" I commanded

Mawile grabbed Nuzleaf's hand and vanished just before they were crushed

"Nuzleaf, Razor Leaf, full power!" I yelled

Nuzleaf flipped rapidly and sent a barrage of leaves at Walrein. The walrus was pelted at first but Torkoal came in with Protect to guard against the attack

Shelly saw an opening and had Walrein use Ice Ball on Nuzleaf who was still in mid-air. The Grass-and-Dark-type was blown back

"Flamethrower!" Tabitha demanded

"Counter with Fairy Wind!" I said quickly

Mawile's attack created a spiralling vortex in the middle of room. A Flash Cannon blew through the inferno and blasted Torkoal back. When Walrein was distracted, Nuzleaf was able to deliver a powerful Razor Leaf assault

"You little... Walrein, Blizzard!" Shelly growled

The walrus unleashed it's power. Nuzleaf jumped in front of Mawile and protected her

"Nuzleaf!" I gasped

"Nuz... Nuzleaf..." Nuzleaf winced as he took the attack and began gathering energy

Tabitha had Torkoal back up Walrein's Blizzard with Flamethrower. Nuzleaf took even more damage but stayed strong

"Hang on, Nuzleaf! Mawile, Crunch!" I called out

"Ma!" Mawile nodded and rushed forward

Mawile bit down on Walrein fin. The walrus winced and stopped. Torkoal put it's focus on Mawile and aimed the Flamethrower at her. Nuzleaf fell to his knees and tried to catch his breath

"Enough of this!" Tabitha growled "Torkoal, Smokescreen!"

The tortoise filled the room with smoke. Walrein threw Mawile off and into the cloud

"Smash those pests! Body Slam!" Shelly ordered

"You use Body Slam too!" Tabitha followed

Walrein and Torkoal jumped up and came crashing down. The impact blew the smoke away and Tabitha and Shelly grinned as they thought they had finished my team off. When the Pokemon moved, both Mawile Nuzleaf were gone

"Where'd they go?!" the enemies gasped

"You shouldn't get cocky. Unestimating people won't get you anywhere" I smirked

"Huh?" they both said

I pointed upward "Mawile, Flash Cannon! Nuzleaf, Bide!"

Mawile and Nuzleaf were in the air with each their own concentrated ball of energy. Walrein and Torkoal were hit from above and blasted straight through to the first floor. The walrus and tortoise were knocked out

 _ **MALIK VS. TABITHA AND SHELLY! WINNER: MALIK!**_

"Alright!" I cheered

"Again... Seriously?! Again?!" Shelly growled

Tabitha stomped the ground "You..."

I hugged my Pokemon "You guys were awesome! Nuzleaf, good job hanging on back there"

"Ma" "Nuz" they smiled

Tabitha and Shelly returned their Pokemon and glared at me. I put on a serious face

"What's all this for?" I asked

"The new world. A better world" Tabitha answered

I just stood there

Shelly finally calmed down "We lost, let's go"

The duo walked past me and they glared at me through the side of their eyes. When they left I remembered something

"Crud!" I gasped and looked through the hole in the floor "Lady, are you okay?!"

The woman peeked out from behind the front desk and nodded "Y-Yes, I'm okay!"

"Phew..." I sighed "Guess we did go a little too far, huh?"

My Pokemon scratched the back of their heads in shame "Mawile..." "Nuzleaf..."

I walked over to the former hostages and apologized for the damages. They said it was nothing compared to would've happened if I wasn't here

"Man, looks like we missed a party" Tyler laughed as he walked upstairs with Taylor

"Is everyone alright?" Taylor asked

"Yeah" we all nodded

We discussed why Teams Aqua and Magma came here. One of the scientists said they were trying to steal information about some strange weather phenomenons that occured over a hundred years ago. They also mentioned something called _Primal Reversion_

" _Maxie... Archie... what're you two up to?_ " I thought

We exited the Weather Institute and got back under my umbrella to shield us from the downpour

"So what happened to the guys that were chasing you?" I asked

"They put up a fight but we beat 'em" Tyler answered

"Alright" I smiled

"What about you? You beat Tabitha and Shelly by yourself?" Taylor wondered

"Yeah. We didn't even have to use Aura either" I chuckled "We must be getting stronger"

"Right" the twins nodded

"So, what's our next stop?" I asked

"Fortree City and the Fortree City Gym" Tyler answered

"Let's go!" I cheered

Eventually, the rain had stopped. After walking a little while longer, we came across and place with a ton of tall trees

"What forest is this?" I asked

Tyler pulled out his Pokenav "It isn't a forest. It's Fortree City"

"Okay... Then where are all the people?" Taylor wondered

"And the Gym" I continued

Mawile looked around and noticed something "Ma?"

My partner made her way over to a ladder and climbed it

"Mawile? Where're you going?" I questioned "Hey wait up!"

Mawile climbed into the trees and out of sight so we followed her. The sight caused me to become speechless. The entire town was built on the treetops with bridges connecting each building

"Whoa..." I cooed

"I've never seen anything like this" Taylor smiled

"It's a sight" Tyler nodded

Mawile and I ran across the bridges to see everything we could. When we saw a big tree with nothing built on it, I climbed it with Mawile on my back and saw all of Fortree City

"Check it out, Mawile. I think I might retire here" I smirked

"Mawile" Mawile smiled

"Malik, come down from there!" Taylor scolded

I was about to jump down but I saw what looked like the Pokemon Gym so I grinned "Cool"

We made our way down to the way to the Gym, it was one of the only buildings that was on the actually on the ground. I wanted to rush inside but a Trainer running out of the building slammed into me

"Ow! What's the big deal?!" I complained

"Sorry!" the boy apologized and ran off

The twins helped me off the ground

"What was that about?" Taylor frowned

"Are you okay?" a soft voice said

I looked at the entrance and saw a young woman standing there. She was about Taylor's height, with lavender hair and was wearing a white and light blue flight suit

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks" I nodded

"That's... an interesting get-up" Tyler commented

"Tyler!" Taylor gasped

Tyler, noticing he said that out loud, covered his mouth. The woman laughed in her hand

"I'm sorry. Allow me to introduced myself" she bowed "My name is Winona, and I am the Gym Leader here in Fortree City"

"Really? Awesome!" I smiled "Winona, I'd like to challenge you to a battle please"

Winona frowned "I'm sorry but I just finished a battle with that previous Trainer"

"That boy who just ran outta here?" I asked

"Yes. He fought hard but could not defeat me. Nevertheless, my Pokemon are quite tired. Would it be okay if we had our Gym battle tomorrow?" Winona offered

I was upset but I respected Winona's wishes and agreed. We checked into the Pokemon Center and ran into the boy who ran into me earlier. He was my height with green hair and was wearing a dark gray leather jacket

"Hey. Sorry again for running into you like that. I just had to get my Pokemon healed" he frowned

"Don't worry about it, it's fine" I smiled and held out my hand "I'm Malik and this is my partner, Mawile"

He smiled and shook my hand "I'm Kyle"

We all sat down in the lobby. Kyle said he just got to the city today and challanged the Gym off-the-bat. He told us some things about the Fortree Gym

"She specializes in Flying-types. I thought if I had the advantage I could win, but... they were so fast. It was so hard to land a hit. Heck, my eyes could barely follow 'em" Kyle explained

"Flying-types, huh? Guess I gotta come up with a strategy" I said

"The main thing you gotta watch out for is Winona's Altaria. It's as strong as it is beautiful" Kyle warned

"Altaria... That's the evolved form of Swablu if I'm not mistaken" Tyler said

"That's right. Don't underestimate it" Kyle told us

"I never do" I smirked

A ding went off and a few Pokemon rushed over ot our side. The group of Pokemon consisted of a Ninjask, Loudred, Raichu, and Donphan

"Glad to see you're okay!" Kyle smiled "Oh yeah! Everyone, meet my Pokemon, Loudred, Raichu, Donphan, and my partner Ninjask"

"Nice to meet you" I smiled

"Wait, you used Ninjask, a Bug-and-Flying-type, in a Flying-type Gym?" Tyler wondered

"Wouldn't that put you at a huge disadvantage?" Taylor followed

"Trust me. Ninjask and I have beat our fair share of battles even at a disadvantage" Kyle said proudly

"I hear that" I laughed

"And you see the rest of team can actually hold their own against Flying-types. Raichu of course, being an Electric-type and all, Loudred's Defense is nothing to mess with, and Donphan here knows Stone Edge" Kyle explained

"Wow. With a team like that, I'm surprised you lost" I said

"How do you think I felt?" Kyle laughed "But it's okay. Nothing some extra training and hard work can't fix"

"I like you, Kyle. You got the right attitude" I smiled

"You guys guys seem cool yourselves. Hey, Malik, mind if I watch your battle tomorrow?" Kyle asked

"I don't mind. Hey, maybe you'll learn a thing or two?" I smirked

"Oh yeah?!" Kyle grinned

"Yeah!" I grinned back

Kyle and I shot each other looks only true rivals could muster up for one another

Tyler shrugged sighed "Just what we needed, another Malik"

Taylor laughed at her brother's words. We all called it a day and got ready for tomorrow

 _((Sorry about taking so long to put up this chapter. I've been hospitalized for the past couple weeks. Don't ask... Tell me what you think of Kyle. Think he'll go far this story? Next time, Fortree City Gym battle. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	27. Winona

_((The group ran into Admins Shelly and Tabitha as they were holding a group of scientists hostage. After defeating them, they made their way to Fortree City, met the Gym Leader, Winona, and a young Trainer named Kyle))_

The sun had barely rose in the sky yet I was already wide awake. I had gotten up extra early to get in some last minute training. When I finally came back to the Pokemon Center, I saw my friends having breakfast

"Morning" I smiled

"There you are" Taylor sighed

"Training?" Tyler asked

"Of course. If Winona's as strong as Kyle says she is, I wanna be ready for anything!" I said with determination

"Good luck" Kyle smirked

"Luck's good and all but I have secret weapon" I grinned

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Tyler wondered

Mawile and I looked at our friends smugly "You'll see" "Mawile"

We headed over to the Gym where the lady ref was waiting

"We've been expecting you. Gym Leader Winona is ready for you" she said

"I'm ready too. Let's do this!" I replied

The second we went inside, I could swear we were still outside. I could smell the fresh air. The ceiling of the Gym was wide open and I see the blue sky

"This is definately Flying-type Gym" Tyler chuckled

Winona was standing on a platform was clearly enjoying the gentle breeze. She looked completely engulfed in the peacefulness

"Your challenger has arrived" the ref announced

Winona finally came back to reality and smiled "Oh, I'm sorry. Sometimes I just lose myself"

"Nothing wrong with that. I'm here as promised" I said

"Also as promised, I will accept for challenge. I'm ready whenever you are" Winona nodded

Kyle and the twins took their seats in the stands

"Winona seems very polite" Taylor noticed

"Oh yeah. I never said she was mean, just really strong" Kyle laughed

"This will be a four-on-four battle between Winona, the Fortree City Gym Leader and Malik, the challenger! The battle will be over when all of the Pokemon on either side will be unable to continue! Also, only the challenger will be aloud to switch Pokemon at will!" the ref announced

I stood on my end of the field and got myself mentally ready "Ready, Mawile?"

My partner grinned "Ma"

"Battle begin!"

"Swellow, take the skies!" Winona called out

"Swell!" The bird came flying out of it's Pokeball and flew around

"Swellow, a Normal-and-Flying-type. Malik's best bet is to use Electrike" Tyler said

"Alright! Vigoroth, let's get started!" I called out

"Roth!" the monkey hollered

"Vigoroth's good too" Taylor smiled

"Start off strong! Vigoroth, Slash!" I instructed

The monkey shot forward with his sharp claws

"Quick Attack and Aerial Ace!" Winona counted

When Vigoroth slashed at the bird, it flew to the side at high speed and nailed him in the side with a quick strike

"Whoa, that's fast!" the twins gasped

"Told you. Winona's Pokemon are really quick" Kyle said

"You weren't kidding. Vigoroth's one of Malik's fastest Pokemon and he couldn't dodge" Tyler explained "Malik's really gonna have think this one through"

"Vigoroth, you okay?" I asked

"Roth! Vigoroth!" the monkey yelled as he came back with a vengeance

"That's my boy" I smiled

"Vigoroth's Defense is quite high" Winona smiled

"That's not all. I got up really early so I'd be ready for just this. Don't hold back!" I ordered

Winona nodded "As you wish. Swellow, Aerial Ace!"

Swellow dove close to the ground and came in with great speed

I smirked "Chip Away!"

Vigoroth ducked under Swellow and jabbed it in the belly

"Swellow!" the bird winced

"My dear Swellow!" Winona gasped

"Now, Reversal!" I called out

Vigoroth jumped up and blew the swallow back to the ground, KO'ing it

"Yes!" I smiled

"Swellow is unable to battle! Vigoroth is the winner!" the referee announced

"Vigorth knows Chip Away now, huh? Smart. That move ignores attacks that never miss like Aerial Ace" Tyler explained

Winona called Swellow back and took out another ball "You've raised your Pokemon well, Malik"

"Thanks. And we're just getting started" I told her

"Good. Pelipper, take the skies!" Winona said

The Water Bird Pokemon came out "Pel!"

"Pelepper aren't normally fast..." Tyler mumbled

"I'm sure she has a plan up her sleeve" Taylor shrugged

"Oh yeah. She does" Kyle nodded

"Vigoroth, Chip Away!" I called out

Vigoroth took off and got ready to attack

"Pelipper, use Protect" Winona ordered

Vigoroth ended up hitting a force field around the bird

"Water Pulse!" Winona followed

Pelipper formed a compressed sphere of water and fired it. The sphere hit Vigoroth and he was blown back to the ground where the attack exploded on impact

"Vigoroth!" I gapsed

The monkey was out cold "Roth..."

"Vigoroth is unable to battle! Pelipper is the winner!"

"Pelipper sure is strong" Taylor gulped

I called Vigoroth back "Thanks, buddy, take a good rest"

"This is a problem" Tyler sighed

"Aren't there any moves that break through Protect?" Taylor asked

Tyler scratched his head "Sure there are. There's Feint, Future Sight, Phamtom Force, Shadow Force, Peirsh Song-"

"Get to the point!" Taylor complained

"The point is, none of Malik's Pokemon know any of the moves that can break through Protect" Tyler said "Winona's really testing Malik. This battle's gonna be all about timing"

I thought about my next move "Got it. Vibrava, keep it going!"

"Vi!" the dragonfly cried

"Quick, Vibrava, use Rock Slide!" I hollered

Many large boulders appeared and fell from the sky. Pelipper used Protect to guard itself from the attack

"Dragon Breath!" I followed

"Vi!" Vibrava fired her breath attack

Pelipper protected itself once more

"Come on, come on..." I growled "Dragon Breath one more time!"

Vibrava used her last attack again but this time when Pelipper tried to throw up a force field, it didn't work, resulting in Vibrava's attack to land

"Pel!" the Water Bird cried

"Yes!" I smiled

Tyler smirked "I thought so. Malik knew that if a Pokemon uses Protect over and over, it'll stop working for a while"

"Water Pulse!" Winona shouted

Pelipper fired it's attack

"Dig!" I countered

Vibrava burrowed underground to evade the attack

"A Ground-type move?" Winona wondered

"Dragon Breath from underground!" I instructed

The ground exploded with energy as Pelipper was blown upward

"Now, Rock Slide!" I commanded

Countless boulders fell from above and blew Pelipper out of battle

"Pelipper is unable to battle! Vibrava is the winner!"

Winona sighed and called the bird back. Winona complimented me on how I can switch up strategies without issue

"Skarmory, take the skies!" Winona threw out her next choice

"Vibrava, Dragon Breath!" I called out

Skarmory flew up into the sky in under a second

"Back to speed, I see" Tyler analyzed

"Skarmory's light body makes it even faster than Swellow. Malik's gonna have a hard time with it, I know I did" Kyle added

Vibrava followed Skarmory into the sky but the metal bird was clearly faster. Skarmory was moving so fast I could barely follow it with my eyes

" _Winona's Skarmory's way faster than Tyler's_ " I thought

"Aerial Ace!" Winona ordered

Skarmory began hammering Vibrava over-and-over at blinding speed. The little dragonfly was helpless to fight back or evade

"Vi!" Vibrava cired

When the assault finally stopped, I called Vibrava came to her Pokeball

"Man... Vibrava didn't even get hit from her battle with Pelipper, but then Skarmory takes the stage and Malik's forced to switch out" Kyle frowned

"On the bright side, Malik still has three Pokemon that he can use when Winona only has two. Plus, two of three haven't even battled yet. Malik's got this" Taylor smiled

I wanted to use my secret weapon but I told myself it wasn't the time. I decided Mawile could handle it

"Mawile, keep it going!" I announced

"Ma!" Mawile took the field

"Steel Wing!"

"Crunch!"

Skarmory swooped down as Mawile took the attack head on with her horns ready. At the last second, Skarmory disappeared

"Wile?" Mawile questioned then gasped in pain "Ma!"

Skarmory reappeared and nailed Mawile with it's Steel Wing. Mawile crashed into the ground and regathered herself

"Mawile" my partner growled

"Aerial Ace!"

Just like with Vibrava, Mawile was pelted repeated

"Mawile, grab onto Skarmory!" I instructed

On the last hit, Mawile took it and grabbed Skarmory's leg. My partner was taken into the sky

"Throw Mawile off and use Air Cutter!" Winona commanded

"Skar!" Skarmory flipped and flung Mawile in the air

Skarmory fired multiple razor-sharp projectiles

"Mawile!" Mawile cried

"Mawile, Flash Cannon!" I called out

Mawile shook off the assault and fired her laser but Skarmory avoided it

"Saying Skarmory's fast is an understatement. Mawile's in real trouble" Taylor worried

"Aerial Ace!"

Skarmory came rushing in as Mawile fell out of the sky

I growled "Mawile, dodge with Feint Attack then use Crunch!"

Mawile evaded the hit and managed to bite down on Skarmory's wing. Mawile spun around and threw Skarmory to the ground

"Let's try this again. Flash Cannon!" I called out

Mawile fired her laser again and use able to hit her target. My partner landed on the ground and caught her breath

"You okay?" I asked

Mawile nodded "Ma!"

"Skarmory, Steel Wing!" Winona instructed

"Mawile" I mumbled

Mawile stood her ground and braced herself. When Skarmory flew in Mawile took the hit and grabbed the Armor Bird Pokemon

"Fairy Wind, full power!" I yelled

Skarmory was blasted back and slammed into a wall. Mawile followed up by unleashing a massive Flash Cannon, rendering the metal unconcious

"Skarmory is unableto battle! Mawile is the winner!"

Winona returned Skarmory "Thank you"

"Alright! Now Winona only has one Pokemon left" Taylor cheered

"That would be Altaria, her strongest Pokemon" Kyle said "Malik's really gonna have to go all-out for this one"

"Altaria, pride of the Fortree City Gym, take the skies!" Winona announced

The fluffy bird came out "Al!"

"Altaria" I mumbled and took out my Pokedex

" _Altaria, the Humming Pokemon. On sunny days, it flies freely through the sky and blends into the clouds. It sings in a beautiful soprano_ " the device explained

I looked at my opponent "Kyle was right, Altaria's beautiful. It says Altaria's a Dragon-type so Mawile has the advantage, but..."

Mawile looked exhausted. Skarmory was a tough opponent

"We can do this" I told myself "Flash Cannon!"

"Wile!" Mawile fired her laser

"Cotton Guard" Winona smiled

Altaria's fluffy wings got even fluffier as the Flash Cannon bounced off the bird

"Wow. Cotton Guard is normally supposed to raise the user's Defense but Altaria's acts more like a shield" Tyler noticed

"Earthquake" Winona ordered

Altaria's eyes glowed and ground shook with horrifying force. Mawile took heavy damage and was knocked out

"Mawile is unable to battle! Altaria is the winner!"

"Mawile!" I gasped and picked up my partner

Mawile woke up and frowned "Mawile..."

"Don't be sad. We weren't gonna get anywhere with Skarmory in play, but you took care of it. We're gonna win this" I smiled

Mawile nodded "Mawile"

"Vibrava, keep it going!" I called out

"Vi!"

"Dragon Breath!" I followed

"Cotton Guard then Dragon Pulse!" Winona instructed

Just like with Mawile's Flash Cannon, Vibrava's attack bounced off Altaria's feathers. The Humming Pokemon then launched a piercing laser that blew Vibrava out of the sky

"Vi..." Vibrava whimpered

"Vibrava is unable to battle! Altaria is the winner!"

"Altaria took out Mawile and Vibrava..." Taylor gulped

"And yet, still looks elegant" Kyle said

The twins straight-faced the young man

"What?" Kyle shrugged

I retuned Vibrava and sighed "Oh man..."

"Don't tell me you're giving up" Winona frowned "You still have one Pokemon left"

"You're right, I do. And he's right here!" I grinned and held up my last choice

 _ **EARLIER**_

When I had woke up this morning I had gone into the forest and found a huge boulder to practice on. I had called out all of my Pokemon so everyone could train together. Everyone put everything they had into a their attacks and turned the boulder to dust

"Good job, guys" I smiled

I was about to call out the next formation but I was cut off by a sudden bright light

"Wha... No way" I whispered

 _ **PRESENT**_

"My trump card! Let's finish this!" I yelled as I threw out my last choice

The twins gasped as a whole new Pokemon came into view "That's...

"Manectric!" I smiled

Electrike's evolved form, Manectric, stood on the field

"Ma...nectric!" my new Pokemon howled

"A Manectric? I thought you said he had an Electrike" Kyle commented

"He does... Uhh, did. He must've evolved" Taylor smiled "Go, Malik and Manectric!"

Kyle took out his Pokedex

" _Manectric, the Discharge Pokemon. It's nest can be found where thunderbolts hits. It discharges electricity from it's mane_ "

"That's not all. Manectric, Wild Charge!" I instructed

"Tric!" Manectric took off while covered in electricity

"Cotton Guard!" Winona said quickly

Despite the fluffy shield, Altaria clearly took damage when Manectric collided with the bird

"Tar!" the Humming Pokemon winced

Manectric landed on the ground as a little static remaining on his body

"Wild Charge, huh? That's a strong move but it comes with a price. Each time Wild Charge is used, the user takes recoil damage" Tyler explained

"So Malik shouldn't use the move loosely? Sounds easy enough" Taylor nodded

"What a surprise. It's rare for anyone to break through Altaria's defense. This is fun" Winona smiled

"Yeah. Show me what you got!" I grinned

"Altaria, Sky Attack!" Winona accepted

"Manectric, incercept with Quick Attack!" I countered

The two slammed into each other canceled out the moves

"Discharge!"

"Cotton Guard!"

Manectric's power pummeled Altaria a little before it's poofy shield came up

"Thunder Fang!"

"Dragon Pulse!"

Manectric pounced at Altaria but the Humming Pokemon fired it's laser and blew him back

"Stay strong, Manectric! Quick Attack!" I called out

Manectric rushed ahead and slammed into Altaria

"Altaria, Earthquake!" Winona said

"Tar!"

The ground shook even harder than it did with Mawile. Manectric howled in pain

"Manectric!" I hollered

When the shaking stopped, Manectric collapsed

The ref took a look at my Pokemon "Manectric is unable to... Huh?"

Manectric managed to stand back up

Winona smiled "Such a powerful fighting spirit. All for it's Trainer. As beautiful as that is, I must bring this battle to an end. Altaria, Sky Attack!"

Altaria was about to attack but the bird was suddenly covered in electricity

"Altaria!" Winona gasped

"What's going on?" Taylor wondered

"It's Static, Manectric's ability! When a Pokemon comes in direct contact with a Pokemon with that ability, it could result in paralysis" Tyler explained

"Now's his chance!" Kyle smiled

"Manectric, Wild Charge!" I yelled

The hound erupted in energy and slammed into Altaria. The Humming Pokemon was forced to take the entire attack was blown out of battle

"Altaria is unable to battle! The winner is Manectric and the victory goes to Malik, the challenger!" the ref announced

 _ **MALIK VS. WINONA! WINNER: MALIK!**_

"Alright!" "Mawile!" Mawile and I cheered

I ran out and hugged Manectric "That was awesome! I'm so proud of y- Ahhhh!"

Manectric electrocuted me and smirked

"Not cool..." I mumbled and collapsed

"Congrats, Malik!" Taylor smiled

"Having Manectric as an ace-in-the-hole was a big surprise" Tyler laughed

Winona thanked Altaria for it's hard work and returned it to it's Pokeball. I walked over to the Gym Leader

"I've been defeated" Winona said

"Your Pokemon are really strong. It was a close-call" I smiled

"You command your Pokemon with such grace" Winona bowed "It is my honor to present to you this, the Feather Badge"

I took what looked like a bird's feather from Winona "Alright, this Feather Badge is mine!"

Winona wished me luck with the rest of my journey and we left the building

"So, what'd think of that, Kyle?" I smirked

"Alright, fine, you're a LITTLE BIT stronger than I am but I'll surpass you, count on it!" Kyle replied

"We'll see about that!" I countered

"Oh yeah?" Kyle asked

"Yeah!" yelled

Kyle and I glared at each other for a quick second before laughing uncontrollably and high-fiving

"Next time we run into each other, let's have a battle to remember" Kyle offered

"Your on!" I accepted

We parted from Kyle and got back on the road. Tyler said my next Gym battle should be the Mossdeep City Gym and that was fine by me

 _((Another Gym bites the dust. Not sure what I'm gonna do next chapter but I'll figure it out. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	28. Enemies

_((Quick Recap: Malik challenged and defeated Winona. After receiving the Feather Badge, the group got back on the road))_

We had been through a lot in the past few days so we decided it was time for a day off. We set up camp on Route 120. Tyler was fixing everybody something to eat, Taylor was grooming the Pokemon, and as for me...

"Ma? Mawile?" Mawile mumbled as she pinched my cheek

I was fast asleep on the ground and pushed my partner's hand away "Five more minutes..."

"Wile" Mawile called Manectric over

When the hound came over, Mawile instructed him to shock me awake. Manectric shrugged and used Discharge on me

"AHHHHHHH!"

"Well, sounds like Malik's up" Tyler said

"Plus" Plusle nodded

"What did I do..?" I whimpered

All of my Pokemon laughed

"Awww, it's like children rebelling against the father" Taylor smiled

"This isn't rebelling, it's a revolution!" I snarled

The twins laughed. I looked at my team and saw the looks in their eyes

"So that's how it is, huh? Alright then, let's go!" I challenged

My Pokemon rushed me and I started wrestling with them. Taylor walked around us and noticed something with Tyler's meal. She told him that he was cooking it wrong. The brother laughed and said she didn't know what she was talking about. That sparked an argument between the two

"What makes you think you know?!" Tyler growled

"I know more than you!" Taylor replied

"You always do this! You always think you're a better at anything! Especially with me!" Tyler complained

"I'm not better at everything, just most things" Taylor smirked

The two argued some more and stomped off in different directions with their individual Pokemon

I had finally gotten loose from my team and looked around "Hey, where'd they go?"

My Pokemon shrugged and rushed me again

"Gah!"

Taylor was grumbling to herself as she walked through the woods "Stupid Tyler. I was just tryna help"

Minun, Kirlia and Skitty tried to make their trainer feel better but she was beyond reasoning. Luckily, a quiet walk was enough to get Taylor to quit muttering to herself. When she decided to head back, she came to a bad realization

"I'm lost..." Taylor mumbled "Do you guys know which way camp was?"

Taylor's Pokemon shook their heads. Taylor's group wandered aimlessly, hoping to spot something that looked familiar but every tree looked the same to them. The group got tired and took a break near a boulder

"I can't believe this... Ugh! I'm never gonna hear the end of this!" Taylor groaned

"Zan..." a voice winced

Taylor noticed the sound and stood up "Huh?"

Some creature resembling a cat of some kind with red zig-zag markings and large black claws crawled out from behind a bush. The Pokemon was heavily injured, like it just got in an intense brawl with strong opponent

"Are you okay?!" Taylor gasped and ran over to the Pokemon

"Zan... Zan..!" the creature swung it's claws but just collapsed a second later

"It's okay... I'm not gonna hurt you, alright?" Taylor said softly and slowly walking forward

The Pokemon had no energy and acccepted it's possible fate, passing out just as Taylor stepped up to it. When the Pokemon woke up, it felt way better

"Hi. How you feling?" Taylor asked

The Pokemon looked at it's body. Parts of it's fur were damp and smelled like fruit. The Pokemon nodded

Taylor smiled "That's good. I used some of the berries from around here to make a medicine. I don't much about it but I know enough. Good thing, huh?"

Taylor's Pokemon gathered around their new friend and the cat smiled back at them. At this moment, Taylor wished she had a Pokedex so she could figure out what kind of Pokemon she just met

"I could swear I've seen a Pokemon like you somewhere before but I can't put my finger on it" Taylor said, scratching the Pokemon under the chin "It'll come to me"

"Zan" the cat purred

"Hey, how would you like to come along with me?" Taylor offered with a smile

The cat creature sat there for a moment then nodded. Taylor took out a Pokeball and held it out. The Pokemon tapped the ball and was sucked inside, being caught. Taylor was so happy at gaining a new friend that she wasn't mad anymore. In fact, she decided that she'd apolgize to her brother the first chance she got. With that, she got back to finding her way back to camp. When she finally got back, Tyler, Mawile and I were there

"There you are!" Tyler called out and ran over

"You're not mad anymore?" Taylor asked

"I was worried sick!" Tyler replied

Taylor nodded "Oh, my bad. Listen, Tyler, uhh..."

"I'm sorry!" both twins said at the same time "What?! No, I'm the one that's sorry! Stop that! I'm serious! Cut it out!"

"I hate it when they do that" I sighed

Tyler laughed "Anyway, glad's that's over"

"Yeah" Taylor smiled and took out a Pokeball "Oh, I almost forgot. I caught a new Pokemon!"

I rushed up and pushed Tyler out of the way, excited "Really?!"

"Yup. Actually, I was hoping I could borrow your Pokedex, Malik" Taylor said

"Sure" I instantly took out my Pokedex

"Let's go!" Taylor threw the ball in the air

The cat came out and looked at us

" _Zangoose?_ " Tyler thought

" _Zangoose, the Cat Ferret Pokemon. To threaten those it encounters, it fans out the claws on it's front paws_ "

"Zangoose! That's right. That name definitely rings a bell but I know there's still something missing, I just know it" Taylor mumbled before hugging Zangoose "But whatever, I'll figure it out later. I got a Zangoose!"

Tyler walked up "Where did you..."

"I got lost and came across Zangoose. Poor thing was hurt so I fixed him up and now we're friends" Taylor explained

"Now I get it..." Tyler gulped

"Get what?" I asked as I noticed one of the Pokeballs on Tyler belt was shaking "Huh?"

The ball popped open and a large snake with a blade-tail came into view "Viper!"

Zangoose glared at the snake and they instantly started attacking each other

"What?!" I gasped, jumping out of the way

"Zangoose! Stop, please!" Taylor begged

"They won't!" Tyler hollered

"Tyler, what's going on?!" I yelled

"Seviper, hey!" Tyler called out

" _Seviper? That name..._ " Taylor thought

Zangoose and Seviper were mercilessly attacking one another

"Stop it! Both of you!" I demanded

I jumped in the middle of the brawl and tried to keep the two separated. It wasn't easy and I was getting pretty hurt myself

"Ah..! Ow! Stop!" I winced

"Malik!" Taylor gasped

Mawile swooped in a threw Seviper to the side with her horns and blew Zangoose away with Fairy Wind. The two came running back a second later

"Taylor call Zangoose back to it's Pokeball!" Tyler ordered

"R-Right!" Taylor held up Zangoose's ball "Zangoose, return!"

The cat was called back and Seviper calmed down. I fell down the second I wasn't getting attacked anymore

"Oh man..." I groaned

Taylor teared up "I... I don't understand..."

"I have a theory, but not now! Help me out!" Tyler said helping me off the ground

The twins nursed me back to health. While I rested, Tyler explained the situation. He said that he returned to camp not long before Taylor did. Before that he explained that after he stormed off, he ran into Seviper, but it was really hurt. After healing it, he caught it. Taylor said that was the same thing happened to her, except with Zangoose

"I still don't understand why they attacked each other like that" Taylor frowned

"Because they attacked each other before" Tyler mumbled

"Huh?" the sister gasped

"Seviper and Zangoose fought each other before we ran into them" Tyler commented

"How do you know that?" Taylor glared

"It's a known fact that those two Pokemon specifically are born hating one another. Like that story. Remember? Mom and Dad told us that old bedtime story about the warriors, Zangoose and Seviper" Tyler smirked

Taylor gasped as she remembered where she heard about Zangoose before. The twins' parents used to tell them about two samurai, a Zangoose and a Seviper. The two warriors fought each other for decades. Each duel was always on sight. No talking, no insulting, always just straight to the point

"I remember that now. It had such a sad beginning..." Taylor said

"But an awesome ending!" I smiled "I remember that story too!"

"You were awake this whole time?!" the twins growled

"Yeah" I laughed

"Mawile?" Mawile spoke up

"The ending? Well the story ended when Zangoose and Seviper met a Dusknoir, who was actually more of a jerk than either of them" I spoke "Zangoose and Seviper always fought each other but never messed with anyone else. So when Dusknoir came along and started attacking innocent Pokemon, Zangoose and Seviper decided they had a common enemy and defeated Dusknoir together. After that, the two were no longer enemies. In fact, they became great friends. The point of the story is that even the worst of enemies can become friends. It was awesome!"

"It doesn't matter how great the story is, it is still just a story. Zangoose and Seviper are genetically built to be rivals. Their hatred for each other is actually IN their DNA" Tyler explained

I just realized that I hadn't yet checked out Seviper so I took out my Pokedex again

" _Seviper, the Fang Snake Pokemon. Constant polishing makes the edge of the blade on it's tail extremely sharp_ "

"What are we gonna do? I don't what a fight to break out everytime we let our Pokemon out" Taylor worried

"Should... Should one of us release Zangoose or Seviper?" Tyler gulped

"What?! No!" Taylor glared

"How 'bout a battle?" I suggested

"Seriously?" the twins deadpanned

"Sure. I grow a respect for everyone I've ever battled" I told them

"Really? Even Maxie and Archie?" Tyler questioned

"Eh... I mean, I still hate 'em, just in a respectable way" I shrugged

"It's worth a shot. Besides, I don't hear either of you thinking of anything better" I said

They agreed and decided to try out my idea. Tyler and Seviper went to one side and Taylor went to the other. She called Zangoose back out and to no one's surprise automactically went for Seviper. I had Mawile use Fairy Wind to keep them apart

"Easy, you two! Listen, you're gonna have a Pokemon battle and learn to respect each other, like family should, okay?" I asked

The two Pokemon just glared at each other

"Okay, how about this? Either go with my plan... or deal with her" I deadpanned and pointed to Mawile who was grinning

Zangoose and Seviper thought back to how easily Mawile swept them earlier and calmed down a little

"That's what I thought" I smirked and stood on the side of the field "Alright! This is a one-on-one battle between Tyler and Taylor! The battle will be over when either Seviper or Zangoose is unable to continue! Battle begin! Hey, refereeing's pretty fun"

"Ma" Mawile nodded

"Zangoose, Quick Attack!" Taylor instructed

"Seviper, Night Slash!" Tyler countered

Zangoose rushed ahead as Seviper's sharp tail gave off a dark-purple energy. The two attacks collided and cancelled each other out

"Poison Fang!"

"Shadow Claw!"

Seviper's vicious fangs glowed and Zangoose's claws erupted in shadows. Just like before, they attacks blew both Pokemon back

"Wring Out, quick!" Tyler called out

Seviper quickly wrapped around Zangoose and squeezed tightly

"Zangoose, Iron Tail!" Taylor hollered

Zangoose managed to nail the snake on the head and was able to get free. The two battled but they weren't being as ferocious as I expected. It looked like they were running on fumes then I remembered that they've been fighting all day and must've been exhausted by now

"Let's end this! Seviper, Poison Tail!" Tyler ordered

"Zangoose, full-power Crush Claw!" Taylor followed up

Zangoose's claws glowed white with added static while Seviper's tail glowed bright-purple. The two Pokemon rushed in with their signature moves. This collision was different from the others. When the strikes made contact, instead of canceling out one another, Zangoose and Seviper proceeded to try and push each other back. When neither of them won the grudge match, an explosion went off. When the smoke cleared, both Zangoose and Seviper were out cold

 _ **TYLER VS. TAYLOR! OUTCOME: DRAW!**_

The twins walked up and returned them to their Pokeballs

"So... what have we learned?" I asked

"Nothing we didn't already know" Tyler shrugged "Those two hate each other"

I nodded "True, but..."

"But what?" Taylor wondered

"True they were fighting at first, but when you started telling them what to do, they forgot most of that to battle with you. We still have work to do... but I have good feeling about this two" I said

Tyler and Taylor looked at each other and smiled

"Let's get started" I smiled

 _((Trust me, I've got something planned for our new friends. Next time, a little haunting never hurt anyone. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	29. Fear

_((Quick Recap: Tyler and Taylor caught a Zangoose and Seviper. After seeing how much the two didn't get along, they declared that they'd do whatever it took to make their new family work))_

It had only been a few hours since the twins' battle. As the sun began to go down, the twins were off to the side, doing some deep thinking about their enemy Pokemon. I figured they didn't need any distractions so I made myself scarce. I took the opportunity to do some much needed training. I remembered how close I came to losing to Winoca and decided that I needed to get way stronger than I am now. I already knew who to start with

"Misdreavus, let's get started!" I called out

"Drea!" the little ghost cheered

To no one's surprise, Misdreavus flew around. When she tried to phase through my body, I quickly jumped to the side in fear

"We don't have time for that, it's grind time" I said

"Dreavus?" Misdreavus mumbled

"Training, Misdreavus. We're gonna do some training today. Up for it?" I smiled

Misdreavus got excited and nodded. I had Mawile be Misdreavus' opponent. Misdreavus was excitable but a fast learner. When I came up with a combination using two of her moves, it didn't take long for the ghost to get it down

"Alright!" I hollered "One more time! Screech and Psywave!"

Misdreavus charged up energy and kept it in one spot. When she finally let it loose, she also unleashed a wicked scream that set off the Psybeam like a firework. Mawile jumped around to avoid the falling shots of energy

"Awesome! We'll call that move... Uhh..." I drew a blank "Psy-Screech..? Screech-Wave..? Huh... I'm usally good at this. Whatever, it'll come to me"

Mawile shrugged and shook her head "Mawile..."

I looked away to think of another combo and when I looked back, Misdreavus was drifting off

"Misdreavus? Where are you going? Hey, wait up!" I called out

Mawile and I chased after the ghost but lost her when she flew over a lake to a cave in the base of a mountain

"Where's she going?" I asked myself

"Malik!" Tyler yelled as he and Taylor ran up "What's going on?"

"Misdreavus ran off" I answered

"Why, did something happen?" Taylor wondered then glared at me "Did you shun her again?! Poor thing"

"I didn't do anything!" I growled "Come on, we gotta go get her"

Tyler asked Skarmory to carry us over the lake so we wouldn't have to waste time swimming. I walked inside and gasped at how dark it was. We each took out a flashlight and looked around

"Misdreavus! Where are you?!" I hollered

When I took a few steps, I stubbed my toe on something hard

"Ow!" I winced "What the..?!"

Taylor aimed her light at whatever I hit, revealing a grave tombstone

"A grave?!" I gasped

Tyler used his flashlight to see the multiple tombstones "Is this... a graveyard?"

"Spooky" Taylor laughed

"Why did Misdreavus have to come here of all places?" I gulped

"What's the big deal?" Tyler asked

"Dude... Graveyard. Do you know what goes in graveyards?!" I yelled

"I, uhh... Yeah?" Tyler shrugged

"And do you know what follows..?" I mumbled as I felt a cold chill go up my spine and turned around slowly "Only one thing..."

A Banette jumped out at me and yelled in my face. I stood completely motionless for a moment before my terrified shout could be heard from the cave. I bolted out of the mountain and fell in the water

"Malik!" Taylor cried as my friends followed me outside

I resurfaced and coughed "Ghosts... I knew it..."

"I know you're scared but get over it, we gotta find Misdreavus" Tyler scolded

I nodded and climbed out of the water. Tyler told us that this mountain was known as Mt. Pyre and that is wasn't odd that Ghost-types hung around the place

"That's probably why Misdreavus came here, she must've somehow been drawn here" Taylor assumed

We went back inside the cave. My guard was the highest it had ever been in my life. All I wanted to do was find my friend and leave as fast as humanly possible. Everytime I heard the slightest sound, I waved my flashlight in that direction

"Jeez, Malik, calm down. I've never seen you like this" Tyler said

"I can't help it, I haven't been anywhere like this since I was a kid, I'm losing it..!" I replied

Tyler just shook his head "You have a serious problem, you know that?"

"I'm sorry, I thought we were here to find my missing Pokemon, not to judge me" I glared

"We are. But I think this is a good opportunity for you to get over your fear. Meet some Ghost-types, make friends. You did it with Misdreavus, how hard could be to get along with any other Pokemon?" Tyler shrugged

I looked down "Taylor, what do you think?"

The girl had disappeared

"Taylor?!" Tyler and I gasped

"Where'd she go?!" I panicked

"Not again, this is just like when we ran into all those Taillow!" Tyler snapped

As Tyler and I freaked out, Mawile leaned against the wall in boredom. When two eyes appeared on the wall, Mawile quickly turned her head just as they vanished

"Ma?" Mawile mumbled

"This is just great... Just what we needed right now!" I groaned

"What are we gonna do?" Tyler asked

I turned away "Give me a second, I gotta think"

I felt someone tap my shoulder

"Hold on" I said

Next, someone tugged on the back of my jacket

"One sec..!" I growled

After that, my hat got flipped off my head so I had to catch it

"Dude! Cut it out!" I yelled

Tyler was actually standing a few feet away from me

"What are you talking abo... Uh-oh" Tyler went wide-eyed

I turned around and came face-to-face with a Haunter

"Haun!" the Pokemon hollered

I freaked out "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Not even a second later, I took off like a bullet with Mawile right behind me

"Malik, wait!" Tyler called out before something grabbed his arm "Huh?"

The one Haunter turned into an entire group of them

"Oh man..." Tyler gulped

Mawile followed me as I ran deeper into the cave. When I finally stopped, I fell against a wall to catch my breath

Mawile put her hands on her hips and glared at me "Mawile"

"Sorry..." I mumbled

Mawile looked around and saw that Tyler was nowhere to be seen "Ma. Mawile"

I understood what my partner was trying to say "Ah crud... What am I gonna do now?"

Mawile felt a presence and put her guard up

"What now?" I worried

When nothing happened, we took off. Mawile and I walked around Mt. Pyre for a while longer and whenever a Ghost-type popped up, Mawile blew it away. It was hard to believe but it had somehow gotten darker than it was earlier

"First Misdreavus, then Taylor, and now Tyler... What the heck is going on?" I asked myself

When chaotic giggles came from down the hall, Mawile and I got ready for anything. Countless Shuppet and Duskull swarmed in our direction

"Oh come on!" I snapped

Mawile was about to pick a fight but I grabbed her and took off. The ghosts grabbed us and flew around

"Hey! Put us down!" I demanded

The Pokemon giggled and dropped me on the ground

"Ow!" I winced "You jerks... Wait... Mawile? Mawile!"

"Ma!" Mawile called out as she was forced into the darkness

"Mawile!" I ran for my partner but lost sight of her when the ghosts flew into total darkness "No..."

I fell to my knees and hit the ground. Reality slowly set in around me. Thanks to my idiotic fear, all of my friends were taken away. I tried to think of something to do but the very thought of the countless spirits around kept clouding my mind. I considered using another one of my Pokemon to help me but with the way I was, I wouldn't be able to call out instructions properly and they'd just be taken as well

" _I... I can't do anything..._ " I thought

 _ **YEARS AGO**_

I was sitting in a room with a woman with blonde hair

"What did you say?" I asked

"I said there's nothing wrong with being afraid. Actually, I kinda like fear" she said

I tilted my head "That's stupid. Why?"

"Every person's fear is like their limit. Once you know it, you can overcome it. Meaning, when you beat your fear, there's nothing holding you back. Understanding, Malik?" the woman smiled

"I guess" I shrugged

 _ **PRESENT**_

That memory changed something. I stood up and stayed motionless as various Ghost-types began flying around me, The second I was completely engulfed in the spirits, a huge blast blew all of them away. I called out all of my Pokemon to fight with me

"Let's go, everyone!" I yelled

My Pokemons' power erupted and kept the ghosts away. One of Manectric's bolts knocked a pillar to a diagnal angle

"I'm still scared... But I'm with it holding me back! Manectric, Wild Charge!" I instructed

Manectric ran up the knocked over pillar and strainght through the ceiling. I followed close behind with everyone else. My team and I battled are way to the the last floor of Mt. Pyre

"Guys... thanks" I panted and smiled

I returned everyone to their Pokeballs and went up the last staircase. The light of the full moon hit me the second I reached the outside. It took my eyes a moment to adjust but when they did, I saw that I wasn't alone. There was someone, a girl, doing some kind of fire dance. She had tan skin, short black hair, two large flowers in her hair, and was wearing a tropical top and skirt

"What the..." I mumbled

She noticed me "Oh, hey. Was that you making all that commotion down there?"

"Yeah. Who are you?" I asked

"My names Phoebe" she smiled

"I'm Malik. Sorry to interrupt you but I'm looking for my friends" I told her

"Let me guess, the ghost Pokemon?" Phoebe smirked

I nodded "Yes, actually. How did you..."

"They do that" Phoebe laughed

"Why? Why are they doing this?" I glared

"They're Ghost-types, they play tricks" Phoebe shrugged "They don't mean any harm. Well, most of them don't..."

"Coulda fooled me. Game's over, I'm finding my friends and getting outta here. And to think all of this started with Misdreavus wandering off" I frowned

"Misdreavus you say? A Misdreavus made it's way here not too long ago. I tried to catch it but my Pokeball rejected it. Now I know why, Misdreavus already had a trainer" Phoebe explained

"Misdreavus? You've seen her? Where is she?!" I asked loudly

"Misdreavus went off with my partner. They said they'd be right back" Phoebe said

"You're partner's a person?" I asked

Phoebe shook her head "No"

I felt the wicked chill run up my spine and slowly turned around. Some kind of black figure with large white hands and a single red eye stood there and stared at me

"Wah!" I panicked and fell back

"Dusclops, you're back" Phoebe smiled

"This is your partner?! I thought you said he talked to you!" I freaked

"He did. I can talk to Ghost-type Pokemon" Phoebe told me

"Of course you can..." I mumbled

Misdreavus came up from behind Dusclops and smiled at me "Drea!"

"Misdreavus!" I smiled and hugged the little ghost "You're okay! Thank goodness!"

Misdreavus got excited and flew through my chest

"Ah..." I shuttered "Yup, that's definitely you..."

"Hm?" Phoebe hummed to herself

"Misdreavus, why did you leave? Do you have any idea how worried I was?" I scolded

The Screech Pokemon frowned and tried to explain herself but I couldn't understand her

"She said that the energy coming off of this place drew her here" Phoebe explained

"I see. Well... I guess I can look the other way just this once but don't do that again, okay?" I asked

"Drea" Misdreavus smiled and nuzzled my cheek

"I'll take that as a yes" I sighed and smiled

"I might've been wrong but I was given the impression that you weren't fond of Ghost-type Pokemon" Phoebe commented

"I'm not, but Misdreavus is the exception. I hatched her from the egg she was in" I replied

"Got it" Phoebe nodded

I told the little ghost about the situation. I told her that we had to find everyone immediately but I came to a bad realization. Excluding Mawile, who was missing, the rest of my Pokemon were exhausted

"Well you still have Misdreavus. Ghost-type attacks are strong against other Ghost-types" Phoebe spoke up

"Misdreavus is still really unexperienced, there's no way she can battle her way through this place. Besides, we don't know where they are. We'll burn through all of Misdreavus' power before we get a single clue" I said

"You could always evolve her" Phoebe suggested holding up a dark rock

"What is that?" I asked

"A Dusk Stone. Misdreavus can evolve into Mismagius using it" Phoebe explained

"Evolve Misdreavus? But... she just hatched not too long ago. Doesn't it seem a little unfair to evolve her this early?" I worried

Phoebe handed me the stone "That's your decision"

"No... It's not" I turned to Misdreavus "What do you wanna do?"

I could tell Misdreavus was worried about everyone just like me

"Drea" Misdreavus smiled and nodded

"I trust your judgement. Let's go" I held up the Dusk Stone

Misdreavus made contect with the rock and started to glow. I covered my eyes to shield myself from the bright light. When it stopped, a new Pokemon floated before me. Misdreavus' new appearance reminded me of a witch wearing a cloak. I took out my Pokedex

" _Mismagius, the Magical Pokemon. It's cry sounds like an incantation. It is said the cry may rarely be imbued with happiness-giving power_ "

"Mismagius..." I mumbled "This is cool and all but this doesn't change the fact that we still don't know where the ghosts took my friends"

"Isn't there anyway you could find out?" Phoebe asked

I thought about it for a moment before getting down on one knee and placing my right hand on the ground

"What are you doing?" Phoebe wondered

"If they took everyone to the same place, then all I have to do is find Mawile. So that's what I'm gonna do" I said

"How?"

"You have your ways to communicate... and I have mine" I responded and closed my eyes

I took a breath and concentrated. Though I never moved from that spot, I got a view of all of Mt. Pyre. The last stop was of a dark room where Mawile and the others were sitting. I couldn't make it out up there were some kind of lights circling them

I opened my eyes and stood up "Got it! Ready, Mismagius?"

"Mag" the ghost nodded

I went back inside the caves and walked down the hallway. When Ghost-types came at me, Mismagius phased up through the ground and blew them away with Psywave

"You are totally stronger!" I smiled

"Magius!" Mismagius smiled

I focused and drew out a map to Mawile in my head. I led Mismagius to the place I was sure my friends were waiting. I walked up to a thick wall and nodded

"This is it. Don't hold back, Mismagius" I said stepping to the side

On the other side of the wall, Mawile, Taylor, and Tyler were sitting in the dark with a bunch of flames floating around them before the wall exploded and the room filled with smoke

"What was that?!" Taylor gasped

I ran in the room "Guys!"

"Malik!" "Ma!" everyone smiled

The Banette from earlier floated down to my level and tried to pick a fight with me. I took out my Pokedex so I could know what I was up against

" _Banette, the Marionette Pokemon. A doll that became a Pokemon over it's grudge of being thrown away. It constantly seeks the child who disowned it_ "

"Scary..." the twins mumbled

I looked down and covered my eyes with my hat "I remember you. So you're the one who's been calling the shots, huh?"

"Banette" the figure grinned

Banette rushed at me. I stayed motionless as a dark sphere flew past my head and sent Banette flying back

"That was Shadow Ball! Who did that?" Tyler wondered

"Mis...magius" Mismagius whispered as she entered the room

"A Mismagius?" Tyler asked stunned

"Is that..." Taylor mumbled

"Yeah. Misdreavus evolved" I smiled

"Nette!" Banette yelled and came back with a vengeance

Multiple light blue-ish flames appeared around Banette

"That's Will-O-Wisp!" Tyler warned

"Psywave!" I called out

Mismagius' attack cut through Banette's flames but missed the Marionette. Banette used Night Shade that delivered a lot of damage to Mismagius. Both of them used Shadow Ball and they canceled each other out. The two clashed over-and-over but Banette seemed stronger

"I know just the move to settle this. Mismagius, Psywave and Screech!" I called out

Mismagius charged up power and screamed. The energy exploded like a massive firework. Whenever shards of the attack collided with one another they'd explode to ensure the attack had no blind spot. Banette was pelted from every angle and fled in terror. When Banette left, the flames pinning my friends down disappeared

"Alright! Seeing that move in action, I think I'll call it... Psy-Shower!" I laughed

"Mag!" Mismagius smiled

We couldn't have gotten out of there quick enough. On the way out, the twins explained to me that the Banette must've not liked us it's turf and were trying to teach us a lesson by holding us hostage. When we finally got out, I hugged the ground

"Ah... That's better" I sighed in relief

"That's a little much, don't you think?" Taylor scolded

"I don't think so. Why, do you?" I asked

"Who cares? Malik, you really came through for us. Thanks" Tyler smiled

"Yeah" I nodded

"So you really conquered your fear, huh?" Taylor smirked

"Not really. I mean, I'm still scared but I'm more scared of losing my friends, ya know?" I smiled

Taylor blushed "T-Thanks..."

"Oh yeah, there's one more thing. If I'm not mistaken, Misdreavus can only evolve into Mismagius using a Dusk Stone. Where'd you get one?" Tyler asked

"I met a girl who can talk to Ghost-types and she gave me a Dusk Stone" I answered

The twins laughed

"Dude, if you don't wanna tell us, just say so" Tyler chuckled

I sighed and came up with something else "I'm just kidding. Remember all stones Brianna gave us? There was a Dusk Stone in there"

"That makes more sense" Taylor nodded

As we started walking off, I looked at the top of Mt. Pyre and saw Phoebe waving goodbye to me. Mismagius and I smiled and waved back

"Mismagius, I'm sorry you got forced into this situation" I told my Pokemon

Mismagius shook her head and smiled "Mag"

I let my guard down, giving the ghost an opening to phase through my body

"Gah!" I gasped and fell to my knees as my eyes twitched "That's feels even weirder now...!"

Mawile and Mismagius laughed as I had a slight panick attack

"Guys, it's been a long day. How 'bout we just set up camp here tonight?" Tyler suggested

"Sounds good" Taylor nodded

 _((Next time, the first step to the end! Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	30. Trust

_((Quick Recap: After Misdreavus wandered off, Malik's group was abducted by a Banette. Malik then met a mysterious girl named Phoebe who helped evolve Misdreavus into Mismagius. With Mismagius' new power, Malik rescued his friends))_

We had set up camp near Mt. Pyre. Everyone was in their tents and was passed out, exhausted from the previous day. Mawile, Tyler and Taylor were sound asleep, without a care in the world. I, on the other hand, was tossing-and-turning in my sleep. I grunted and gasped as sweat ran down my face. Without warning, various voices starting running through my mind

 _"Don't do it!"_

 _"I'm over here!"_

 _"Get moving!"_

 _"I'm scared... I can't do this..."_

 _"Please!"_

 _"No!"_

 _"I couldn't protect you... I'm sorry..."_

 _"MALIK!"_

"Gah!" I gapsed and quickly sat up

I panted and held my head. It was difficult to catch my breath but I managed. I sighed and fell back onto my pillow, waking my partner in the process

Mawile rubbed her eyes "Ma..?"

"Sorry..." I mumbled

Mawile tilted her head "Mawile?"

"Try and get back to sleep. I'm going for a walk" I said and left my tent

I made my way to the nearest source of water and stared at my reflection. To calm myself down I sat on the edge and put my feet in the water

 _"That's better, I guess..."_ I thought

"Couldn't sleep?"

I turned around and saw Taylor standing there with a frown on her face

"What are you doing up?" I asked

"I heard you yell and saw you come here" Taylor explained and sat next to me "Wanna talk about it?"

"Taylor, I don't even know what it is I need to talk about" I frowned

"It's not easy, is it? Your abilities?" Taylor asked

"It was easier when I didn't know I had 'em, if that's what you mean" I shrugged

Taylor hugged her legs and looked up "The very first day I met you I was able to tell that you were different, but in a good way. You always spoke your mind, you didn't want to be a Trainer back then but you always liked Pokemon, and... y-you were were always really nice to me"

I smiled and picked up a small pebble. Threw the rock and skipped it across the water. Taylor noticed I was feeling better and smiled

"Was there ever any reason to why this is my life? Countless other Trainers out there with normal lives, then there's me. One ancestor with Aura later and I'm suddenly dragging around all of this responsiblity. Not only that, but I drag you and Tyler into this. And Mawile... Because we have a bond, Mawile has to go through all of this craziness becaused of me... I'm sorry" I frowned

Taylor nudged my arm "Don't think like that, dummy! Remember, Tyler and I wanted to come. And Mawile made her way all the way to Littleroot Town just to be by your side. None of us were forced into this. True, it's not what we expected, but that doesn't mean we blame you for it. It just means... Well, it means what it means. Besides, like I said, you're different. And a different person deserves a different life"

I thought hard about my friend's words. Taylor accidentally placed her hand on top of mine and jumped back

"Sorry!" Taylor gasped

"Hm? About what?" I asked, not noticing what happened

Taylor blushed and looked forward "Nothing!"

I thought back to all of the strange dreams I had. One way or another, I knew every detail would tie itself around me sooner or later

"Taylor... I don't know what's happening... I don't know what's gonna happen, either... But I know I'm in the middle of it" I mumbled

Taylor sighed "Malik, I told you that it's gonna be alri- Ah!"

I quickly jumped out of the water, took a knee and grabbed Taylor's hands

"What?" Taylor gasped and blushed

I looked Taylor in the eyes "Whatever this is, I won't let it hurt you! Or Tyler! Or Mawile! Brianna! Steven! Everyone! I'll do everything I can to protect everyone! Do you trust me? Do you trust that I'll take care of this?"

"Y-Yeah" Taylor nodded

I smiled "Bear with me, okay?"

Taylor smiled back and nodded "I will. Uhh... Malik, can I have my hands back?"

"Hm?" I realized that I hadn't let go of Taylor so I released her hands immediately and chuckled nervously "My bad"

I felt a lot better and stood up straight. I stared at the water and grinned. I took out my shirt and threw it to the side

Taylor blushed harshly, covered her eyes but still peeked through her fingers

"Wh-What are you doing?!" Taylor gasped

I dove into the water and swam towards the bottom

"Malik! Hey!" Taylor called out

I stopped swimming and faced upward. I saw the moonlight glisten on the surface of the gentle waves. I reached my hand out towards the light and made a fist

 _"I'll protect... everyone!"_ I thought and grinned

I finally resurfaced and caught my breath

"What was that?!" Taylor glared

"It was fun, try it" I smirked and pulled Taylor's arm

"Malik, stop!" Taylor screamed as she was pulled into the water

When Taylor came back up, she started attacking me

"You jerk! I come out here to help you and you pull me into a lake?!" Tyalor snapped

I laughed "Come on, live a little!"

Taylor pouted and tried to throttle me but I dove back below the water

"Get back here!" Taylor growled and followed

Though she was seeking revenge, I could tell she was having fun. I ran out of air and went back to the surface. Taylor was right behind me and jumped on my back when she resurfaced. Taylor and I shared a laugh as Mawile and Tyler watched from a distance

"See? Everything's fine" Tyler smiled

"Mawile..." Mawile mumbled

Tyler kneeled down and rubbed Mawile's head "I know you're worried. We are too. But we'll handle it, together"

"Ma" Mawile nodded

"Hey you two! We're hitting the road soon so get some sleep!" Tyler called out

Taylor's entire face turned red as she jumped off of my back "Yeah! Uhh... I'm glad we could talk, Malik. Night!"

Taylor rushed back to shore and to her tent. I walked up to Tyler and Mawile

"I guess I wasn't the only one who heard you, huh?" Tyler smirked

"Sorry" I frowned

"Everything cool now?" Tyler asked

"Yeah" I smiled

We turned in and slept the night away. The next morning, I woke up completely refreshed. I looked to my side and saw that Mawile wasn't there

"Mawile?" I questioned

Assuming she was outside having breakfast, I stepped out the tent and came to a horrible sight. Mawile, Tyler and Taylor were on their knees with Aqua and Magma all over the place

"What..." I mumbled before I was tackled by a Aqua grunt "Ah! What is this?!"

"Retribution" Courtney deadpanned and walked up

I looked up and saw Courtney, Matt, Tabitha and Shelly in front of me causing me to growl

"Malik..." Taylor whimpered

"Mawile..!" Mawile growled

My Pokeballs were taken and I was put in line with the others. I looked over and saw the worried faces of my friends

 _((Yup, stopping here. I know this chapter was kinda short but I wanted a little drama and a heart-to-heart. I was gonna end it with Tyler telling everyone to go back to bed, but I decided to put the next chapter into motion. Next time, a field trip to enemy territory. I want to apologize for taking forever to put up the chapter. All I've been doing is working and sleeping. Even my days off are spent catching up on sleep. I'll try and work on that. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	31. Infiltration: Part 1

_((Quick Recap: Malik had another nightmare and deep discussion with Taylor. After feeling better and getting some much needed sleep, Malik awoke to find himself completely surrounded by Teams Aqua and Magma))_

In Slateport, Courtney and Shelly were in the shipyard, harrassing a man with a mustache about a submarine and were talking about something called the Seafloor Cavern

"I thought we had understanding" Shelly glared

"Please... It's almost done, I swear" the man promised

"We don't have forever. Get it done" Courtney demanded

The women threatened the man some more before leaving for Lilycove in an extra submarine. Upon arriving in Lilycove, they sailed to a hidden cave. They exited the sub and met up with Matt and Tabitha

"Did they give you any trouble?" Shelly asked

"Not really but one of 'em is causing quite the ruckus" Tabitha sighed

In a lower level, Tyler, Taylor and I were in a holding cell. Tyler was sitting against the wall with his arms crossed, Taylor was sitting on her legs and I was repeatedly throwing myself against the bars of the cell

"Ugh! Ah! Gah!" I grunted as I hit the bars over-and-over "LET. US. OUT!"

On the last hit I fell back and grabbed my shoulder

"Ugh..." I groaned "Stupid steel bars..!"

Taylor came over to make sure I was okay "Malik, please stop doing that"

"Yeah, you've doing that for three hours now" Tyler added

"Your point?" I asked

"My _point_ Is that you're gonna shatter your shoulder if you keep it up!" Tyler glared

I got up off of the ground "Then I'll use my other one. We gotta get outta here!"

"You're not going anywhere" Shelly smirked as she walked up with her group

"Man, you people really hold grudges, don't you?" I glared

"When you meddle with our plans, yes!" Matt said loudly

I couldn't help but chuckle "Okay, okay, be honest, is this because I humiliated you guys. On a regular bases, I might add"

The twins stood next to me as we all stared each other down

"I've been wondering this for a while and never got a chance to ask. Maxie and Archie lead two different groups, why do we always see you people together?" Taylor asked

"There's power in numbers. We concluded that we could help each other reach both of our goals together" Tabitha explained "And as you can see, it's working"

"Until we get outta here and take your bosses down" Tyler said

"Impossible" Courtney deadpanned "Nothing can stop Maxie"

"Or Archie!" Matt added

With that, they started to walk off

"You're gonna lose" I spoke

"Pardon?" Tabitha smirked

"You, Archie, Maxie... You're all gonna lose" I repeated "It's just how it is"

"Do tell. How is that?" Shelly asked smugly

"This isn't the first we've faced each other. We'll find a way. We'll get outta here and bring this entire organization down. Simple as that" I said bluntly

"You kids have guts! I like that!" Matt grinned

"Just wait 'til we get loose" Tyler said

"You won't like us so much then" Taylor glared

The group took their leave

"Think they believed us?" Tyler asked

"If they didn't, they're gonna" Taylor replied

"In the meantime, back to Plan A" I said and resumed slamming into the bars "Ow! Wrong shoulder..!"

In another part of the building Courtney's group stopped and were talking about what just happened

"We can't underestimate them" Tabitha said

"You're right. We did that in the past and look where that got us" Shelly spoke "No more mistakes"

Everyone nodded and separated. In a different holding area, Mawile, Plusle and Minun were trapped behind an energy field. Mawile was pacing back-and-forth, trying to think of a plan to escape while the two Cheering Pokemon were sniffing around the edge of the cell. Plusle stopped when he noticed something. Plusle called the others over and Mawile used her horns to tear a chunk of the corner out, exposing a bunch of wires. My partner instructed the twin Pokemon to use their power to shock the wires, hoping to short out the system. Minun used Helping Hand to give Plusle extra power as he used Thunder Wave on the wires. Sparks flew was the system was electrocuted. The energy field glowed and exploded, freeing the Pokemon

Mawile grinned "Ma"

The trio bolted out and down the hallway. When footsteps could be heard coming in their direction, our partners quickly opened a vent and ducked inside. Mawile waited for the grunts to pass and looked at Plusle and Minun

"Ma. Mawile" Mawile said

"Plus" "Min" the Cheering Pokemon nodded

The Pokemon crawled through the vents and looked for their Trainers. Tyler and I were lying on the floor of our cell trying to catch our breath

"Ha... Ha... Ha..." I panted

"What was I thinking, going along with your stupid plan?" Tyler groaned

"Give me a break, it was worth a shot" I sighed

"Any other ideas?" Taylor asked

I sat up "Well, your shoulders are still fine, so..."

"No!" Taylor snapped

"What do you know?"

I looked at the bars and saw a Magma grunt with his hood covering his eyes

"What do you want?" I glared

The soldier opened the cell and got in my face "Answer the question. Tell me everything"

"Get out of my face" I growled

Taylor pushed the two of us apart "Enough. Who are you?"

"And how do you not know what your own team is up to?" Tyler wondered

"I'm asking the questions here. Do you know anything or not?" the guy asked

Taylor was about to say something but I stopped her "Nope. We don't know anything"

"Tsk. Fine" the man walked off "Leave now. It shouldn't be hard to find the exit"

"I'm not going anywhere without my Pokemon" I replied

"So be it" he shrugged and took off

"What was his deal?" I grumbled

"Who cares? Let's get our Pokemon and get out of here!" Tyler said

We ran through the halls for a minute before Tyler stopped us

"Hold on, I just thought of something" Tyler said

"What?" Taylor and I questioned

"It won't be long before someone notices we're gone. We gotta find a way to disappear" he explained

"That's true... I bet everyone knows what we look like" Taylor frowned

"And all it takes is one person seeing us and we're back to square-one" I growled and noticed a closet close by "Huh?"

"Times like this, I really wish we could turn invisible. That way we could be search the whole place and not worry about getting caught" Tyler commented

"Get real, Tyler. There's no possible way that could happen" Taylor scolded

I looked in the closet and grinned "Invisibility is cool and all... but who needs to be invisible when you can hide in plain sight?"

The twins took a look at what I saw and smirked. A group of soldiers gathered in a large empty room

"They escaped?!" Shelly gasped "I don't believe this!"

"Those pesky Pokemon got away too" Tabitha growled

"They must be found" Courtney glared

"We'll find 'em!" Matt yelled

Shelly ordered all of the grunts to spread out and search

"Hurry! Don't let them get away!" Tabitha ordered

All of the grunts scattered throughout the base. In the middle of the commotion, three soldiers entered an empty room and closed the door behind them

"That was close" I sighed as I lowered the hood on my Team Magma uniform

"Huh, I can't believe that worked" Tyler laughed as he did the same

Taylor took off the bandana of her Team Aqua outfit and shook her hair loose "We should be okay like this for now. Good idea, Malik"

"Yeah" I nodded "Hey, I heard Mawile and others got away too"

"Good for them, I guess, but now we don't know where they are" Tyler shrugged

"We'll find 'em, don't worry" I smiled

The doorknob started turning, alerting us that someone was trying to enter the room so we quickly got back into character

A Magma grunt entered the room "You three! What are you doing?! Get back to work!"

Tyler, Taylor and I saluted "Sir!"

We walked with a crowd and pretended to search for ourselves. When I looked up I noticed the twins weren't next to me anymore

"Guys? Uhh... Guys?" I spoke "Ah crud..."

I had somehow gotten separated from my group during the chaos and couldn't bluntly ask random soldiers if they were my missing friends or I'd blow my own cover. I trusted that they'd find their way back to me sooner-or-later and resumed my search for our Pokemon. The twins stood by a staircase and were doing their best not to draw any unwanted attention

"Great, now we lost Malik..." Tyler sighed

"All of these people running around, we lost sight of him. Ugh, this day!" Taylor groaned

"Alright, alright, let's keep our heads. Malik's a big boy, he can take care of himself. Actually, when I think about it, we can use this" Tyler smirked

"What do you mean?" Taylor wondered

"Everyone's looking for us, right? And Malik's hidden, more-or-less, right?" Tyler asked

"Uhh... Yeah?" Taylor shrugged

"Malik's natural instincts will have him search for Mawile and the others, that'll be his first priority. While he's handling that, we should take this opportunity and gather more information about Maxie and Archie's plans" Tyler explained

"Why the sudden interest?" Taylor smirked

"That guy who let us out got me thinking..." Tyler mumbled

"Huh?" Taylor spoke

"Nothing. Alright, you find Malik and the others. I'll find a lab or something and see what there is to see" Tyler instructed

"Will you be okay?" Taylor worried

Tyler smiled and nodded

The twins fist-bumped and separated. Taylor ran for while, carefully looking at people's eyes to see which ones were mine. She ended up passing the place where our belongings were being kept. Taylor snuck inside and grabbed our backpacks and belts so we had our Pokemon

 _"Still missing Mawile, Plusle and Minun"_ Taylor thought and left the room

Our partners were still in the vents, trying to find a way out. When Mawile turned the corner, she came face-to-face with a Pokemon with a light green face

"Ma!" Mawile gasped and fell back onto Plusle and Minun

The Pokemon tilted it's head "Chika?"

Mawile got up and saw it was just a normal Chikorita

"Mawile..." Mawile sighed in relief as the Cheering Pokemon laughed to themselves, causing my partner to growl "Mawile!"

"Chi! Chika!" Chikorita said

"Ma?" Mawile questioned

Mawile explained that they were looking for three humans; a boy with a black and yellow jacket, a boy with purple hair and a red hoodie, and a girl, also with purple hair and a blue hoodie. Chikorita told Mawile that she wouldn't know anything about that and that her Trainer gave her a mission to go to the surveillance room. Mawile figured she could use the cameras to find her friends and said she'd tag along. The Pokemon agreed to stick together and followed Chikorita through the vents

"Knock, knock..." Tyler mumbled as he peaked into an empty room with a large computer "Nobody home, huh? Works for me"

Tyler sat in front of the computer and did his best to access the files of the organization. He browsed through the files and seemed the most interesting. He grew frustrated when he couldn't find anything but noticed something a second later

 _"Malik?"_ Tyler read "They have a file on Malik?"

Tyler read through pages full of information about me. Tyler sat back and grabbed his head

"What in the world..." Tyler mumbled

A Magma grunt walked up and placed his hand on Tyler's shoulder "Hey"

"Wah!" Tyler gasped and hopped up "I uhh... I was just-"

"Save it. I thought I told you to get out of here" he grumbled

"Oh, it's just you..." Tyler sighed

"Why are you dressed like that?" he asked

"It's a long story... A _hide in plain sight_ thing" Tyler shrugged

"Trust me, I know" the soldier said as he lowered his hood, revealing his young face and black hair

"Wha... You're just a kid!" Tyler gasped

"So are you" he countered

"Point taken. But still, my point stands. You're not really with them, are you? Why you just making your way around this place?" Tyler asked

"It's... complicated. Where are the other two?" he glared

"One of us got separated so my sister went to go find him" Tyler explained

"And you, why are you here?"

"I'm just trying to figure out whatever I can. Speaking of which..." Tyler went back to the computer and printed out pages of the files he just read "I gotta get this to my friend, ASAP"

"Considering they went through all of the trouble getting you here tells me that you and your friends are getting in their way. Often, I'm guessing" he shrugged

"Pretty much. More than a few teenagers should, but yeah" Tyler nodded

"Listen, I'm trying to get something done here and if something goes wrong, it's all over. I'll to you what, if I help you find all of your friends and get out of here, can you help me with something?" the boy asked

"Like what?" Tyler wondered

"I might have a way I could put an end to teams Aqua and Magma. I thought I could take this them down myself... but I can't. I hate to ask this of someone I just met, but you can probably help me" he answered

Tyler smirked "'Nuff said"

"I'm sorry?" he asked, surpised by Tyler's response

"These people have been endangering me and my friends for too long. If you have a way to stop all of this, my friends and I are in" Tyler agreed and held out his hand

The two shook hands

"Let's go" the boy said and walked towards the door

"Wait, my name's Tyler. What's yours?" Tyler asked

The boy stopped and looked back "Seth"

In a lower level, a bunch of people including myself were just gathered in a large room with two submarines that resembled Camerupt and Sharpedo

 _"What are those for?"_ I thought

I looked over at the platforms and saw Archie and Maxie with their Admins. They were making sure all of the preparations were ready. All of the Aqua soldiers went to one side of the room with Archie while the Magma grunts went to the other side with Maxie

"Everything... is going to change. I've dreamed of this day ever since I was a boy" Maxie smirked

"I will make your dream reality, Maxie" Courtney smiled

Maxie walked up to his underlings "An opportunity like this only comes once in a lifetime. Wouldn't you agree? Malik?"

"Well, I suppose but..." I stopped mid-sentence and face-palmed myself "Crud..."

A few soldiers quickly grabbed me and pulled my hood off

"You escape yet you stay to try to stop our plans? I praise your commitment, truthfully" Maxie smiled

"Thanks..?" I shrugged

"Tell me, where are your friends?" Maxie asked

I smirked "They're long gone. Just you and me, big guy"

"Ah, I was wondering what was going on over here. If it isn't my favorite landlubber" Archie grinned as he walked up "How are you, lad?"

"Pretty good, considering I'm that much closer to shutting you down" I replied

Maxie raised his eyebrow "Is that a fact?"

I looked out the upper edge of my eye and nodded "As a matter of fact, yes. Nuzleaf!"

"Nuz!" Nuzleaf dropped down from the ceiling and unleashed Razor Leaf in every direction

I raised my hand and caught my belt that came flying at me "What took you so long?"

Taylor ran up beside me with Skitty "Don't start with me, you're the one who got lost!"

"Where's Tyler?" I asked

"Busy?" Taylor answered

All around, the grunts were starting to surround us

"Oh, this outta be good" I grinned

"I agree" Maxie added and adjusted his glasses

"Never a dull moment with these kiddies, huh?" Archie laughed

I punched my palm "Let's get started"

 _((Next time, a battle royale! Questions, comments and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_


	32. Infiltration: Part 2

_((Quick Recap: Malik and his friends were captured by Teams Aqua and Magma. After being thrown in a prison cell, Malik, Tyler and Taylor were released by Seth, a mysterious Trainer posing as a Magma grunt. Malik ended up getting separated from the others and caught by Maxie. Taylor soon showed up with Malik's Pokemon, ready to battle for their freedom))_

In the lowest level of the Aqua-Magma hideout, Taylor and I were running through halls with Nuzleaf, Manectric, Skitty and Zangoose by our sides. We fought our way through the grunts and their Pokemon

"Where's Tyler?!" I shouted

"Busy! He'll catch up later!" Taylor replied

A bunch of guards tried to block us off

"Nuzleaf, Razor Leaf, full-power!" I ordered

"Nuz!" Nuzleaf blew the enemy away

"I don't know which way to go!" Taylor said

"When has that ever stopped us before?" I shrugged "Manectric, Wild Charge!"

"Tric!" Manectric smashed his way through a thick wall

My group ducked into the hole and continued our escape. At Tyler's location, he and Seth were keeping a low profile as an alarm went off

"Guess your friends got caught" Seth pointed out

"I don't know what happened, but I blame Malik" Tyler deadpanned

"What should we do?" Seth asked

Tyler looked at the yellow folder in his hands. He put all of the papers he printed inside of it

"Nothing's changed. Come on" Tyler answered

In the camera room a few men were watching the screens. Out of nowhere, Mawile swooped down from above to and knocked two of them out

"Mawile" Mawile smiled and waved the other men over

Before the others could react, Plusle and Minun jumped down and used Thunder Wave. With the enemy taken care of, Chikorita went to one of the stations. Mawile went to another and did what she could. My partner saw a lot of people heading in one direction. She figured out that Taylor and I were the reason for it

"Ma?!" Mawile gasped

"Plus!" "Min!" Plusle and Minun squeaked

Mawile, Plusle and Minun made for the door but stopped when Chikorita didn't follow

"Mawile?" Mawile spoke

Chikorita shook her head "Chika"

Chikorita was combing through the cameras, looking for something specific. The Leaf Pokemon stopped when she noticed Tyler and Seth on one of the cameras

"Chi?" Chikorita questioned

Chikorita brushed it off and continued searching. When she finally found a scary laboratory she hopped from the station and bolted for the door. Mawile was curious to what Chikorita was up to but was more focused on getting back to her Trainer. Mawile wished her new friend good luck in whatever she was doing and separated. Mawile remembered the area she saw me in and was heading there with Plusle and Minun close behind. Back in my location, Taylor and I were hiding in a closet as the mob of guards ran pass us. Manectric and Zangoose were exhausted so we returned them to their Pokeballs. Nuzleaf and Skitty remained by our sides

"That was close..." I sighed

Taylor nodded "You're telling me... You wanna explain how you got lost?"

"Not really" I shrugged

Taylor glared and pulled my cheek

"Okay, okay..! What do you want from me? We looked like everyone else, I got confused" I frowned

Eventually the crowd passed. We stayed put a little longer just in case there were still some grunts in the area. We were about to exit the closet but stopped when I saw the shadow of someone standing at the door. I made Taylor get behind me, fearing we were about to get attacked. When the door opened, Mawile, Plusle and Minun came into view

"Mawile!" I smiled

Mawile jumped in my arms "Wile!"

Plusle and Minun leaped into Taylor's arms and nuzzled her face

"I'm glad you guys are okay. Now all we need is Tyler and we're outta here" I said

In Tyler's location, the young man suddenly sneezed

"You sick or something?" Seth asked

"I don't think so" Tyler shrugged

"You!" an Aqua grunt hollered

The boys noticed they weren't wearing their hoods

"Uh-oh" Tyler gulped

When the man yelled for backup, Tyler and Seth each took out a Pokeball

"Kirlia, help me out!" Tyler called out

Kirlia came out "Kir!"

"Chandelure, get ready!" Seth followed up

A floating chandelier creature with purple-ish fire came out

"Chan" the Pokemon groaned

 _"Chandelure? That Pokemon can't even be found in Hoenn. Who is this guy?"_ Tyler thought

The enemy threw out multiple Mightyena, Golbat, Weezing and Baltoy

"Chandelure, Shadow Ball!" Seth called

"Kirlia, you use Shadow Ball too!" Tyler ordered

Both Pokemon formed dark spheres and fired. The attack fused together and blew the enemy away

Tyler saw an opening "Kirlia, Future Sight!"

"Kirlia!" Kirlia sent energy into the air that disappeared right after

"Smart. We just have to keep them busy for a little while" Seth acknowledged "Flamethrower!"

Chandelure turned to it's side and fired a stream of purple fire. The flames put up a thick wall of fire. Taylor and I were unaware of what was going on as we ran through the halls. Out of nowhere, I heard a high pitched whistling

"Ah..! What is that?!" I winced

"What's wrong?" Taylor worried

"How can you not hear that?" I asked

Taylor was concerned about what I was going through but a sudden explosion got her attention

"What was that?" Taylor gasped

"Let's go..!" I said

Taylor frowned "But-"

I nodded "I'm okay, let's go!"

Taylor and I made our way to the spot of the explosion

"Tyler!" Taylor and I smiled

"Guys!" Tyler smiled back

The whistling sound grew louder causing me to drop to my knees with my hands over my ears

"Malik!" the twins gasped

Without warning, Kirlia's Future Sight returned and slammed into the enemy. Just like that, the whistling stopped

I stood back up "Huh... I feel better"

"What was that?" Tyler asked

I shrugged "Mm-mm. I heard a really high whistle a second ago but it just stopped"

More grunts were starting to gather

"Bail!" I shouted

We all took off as fast as we could and lost sight of our enemy

Tyler smiled when Plusle jumped on his shoulder "You found them?"

"They found us" Taylor responded

"Now let's get out of here" I said

"We can't" Seth announced

"What? Why not?" I wondered

"We had a deal" Seth answered

"Hold up" I skidded to a stop "I'm sorry, _deal_?"

"Tyler said if I helped him, you'd help me take this place down. We shook on it" Seth explained

I gave Tyler a look "Dude. You made a deal with this guy? We don't even know him. He could be working for Maxie or Archie as far as we know. Like a spy or something"

Tyler looked confused "A spy?"

"...Or something" I shrugged

"Malik, he helped us. He's the one who set us free" Tyler pointed out

I nodded "Hm. Well, thanks for that but I think we can take it from here"

"Doubt it" Seth smirked and started walking "Let's go"

"No" I deadpanned

"What? We don't have time for this" Seth glared

"You're right, we don't" I agreed

Seth stepped up to me "You got a problem with me?"

I grinned "Well as long as I'm being honest..."

Chandelure dropped down and floated in between us "Chan"

"Gah!" I panicked and fell back "What is that?!"

Mawile and Nuzleaf growled at the Pokemon

"It's just a Chandelure. It's Seth's" Tyler said

Taylor got nervous "So you're name's Seth? Uhh... I'm-"

"Taylor and Malik. I know" Seth said without taking his glaring eyes off me

I ignored Seth and started walking. The twins nodded at each other and followed me. Seth, knowing he couldn't go back the way we came, decided to follow

"Tyler, we had a deal" Seth growled

"The deal's still on. We'll take Maxie and Archie down. Just... probably not today" Tyler replied

We ended up on a large X-shaped bridge. We walked to the middle and were debating which way to go

"This way" the twins and I said in unison, pointing in different directions

"Well that narrows it down" Seth said sarcastically

As we argued which way to go, countless grunts flooded the bridge

"Crud... You know, I am so sick of being outnumbered. It's happened so many times, today alone" I groaned and looked at Nuzleaf, Skitty and Kirlia "Tyler. Taylor"

"Malik" the twins responded

I reached into my bag "How about we show these Aqua and Magma chumps what we're made of?"

I quickly tossed the twins two stones. Tyler caught a Dawn Stone and Taylor caught a Moon Stone. I smirked and held up a Leaf Stone

"Let's go!" we shouted and threw the stones in the air

Nuzleaf, Skitty and Kirlia jumped into the air and made contact with the stones. All three Pokemon glowed brightly. When it was over, three new Pokemon landed on the bridge. Kirlia was atleast three feet taller and had blade-like arms, Skitty looked more elegant and royal, and Nuzleaf was taller, had leaves for hands and thick white fur over his face and going down his back

"Gallade, Delcatty and Shiftry!" Tyler smiled

I checked the Pokemon out on my Pokedex "Check it out, new moves"

The twins checked to see what their new Pokemon could do "Cool"

"Attack!" the leader of group yelled

The enemy Pokemon charged at us

"Alright! Gallade, Psycho Cut!" Tyler ordered

"Gal!" Gallade swung his arms and sent bright purple waves of energy flying

Multiple Pokemon were sent back

"Delcatty, Double-Edge!" Taylor shouted

"Del!" Delcatty charged through the wave of Pokemon like a tank

"Can't let them have all the fun. Shiftry, in the air!" I instructed

"Shiftry!" Shiftry jumped and used a few Golbat as footing to get higher into the air

"Now use Dark Pulse!" I followed up

Shiftry gathered dark energy in his hands and fired downward, blowing multiple individuals off the bridge

I grinned and nodded "Nice"

Shiftry landed in front of me and gave me a fist-bump

"With power to spare. Good job, buddy" I smiled

"Wile. Mawile" Mawile nodded

All of the enemy Pokemon regrouped and launched their attacks

"Mawile, Flash Cannon! Shiftry, Dark Pulse!" I said quickly

The collision of attacks triggered an explosion. The smoke cloud quickly spread to our location

"Come on..!" I coughed and ran

I ran along the bridge and heard someone else's footsteps behind me. The smoke got in my eyes so I couldn't see who it was. When I finally stopped, I leaned against a wall and tried to gather myself. When I was finally able to see, I saw who I was with

"You've gotta be kidding me" I sighed

"Not like I'm psyched about this either" Seth deadpanned

Luckily, Mawile and Shiftry were still with me but I somehow got separated from the twins again

"Seriously?" I groaned and grew uneasy when I saw Chandelure floating over our heads "Can't you put that thing away?"

"What's your deal?" Seth glared

"Ghosts freak me out, sue me" I shrugged

"I mean your deal with me" Seth said

"My deal is that this is an emergency and you're trying to keep me and my friends here longer than we have to!" I answered

"I don't know why we're even having this argument! Tyler told me how much Maxie and Archie have been terrorizing you all! When I heard that, I figured when I told you that I was close to taking them down, you'd be onboard with it! But you're not! Why?!" Seth yelled

I stared at him "'Cause those two chuckleheads aren't my first priority! It's getting my friends out of here! Maxie and Archie will get theirs, I can promise you that. But the very first thing I'm going to do is make sure my friends and I are safe. You're welcome to come with us, but if not, I'm going to have to ask you to stay out of my way"

Seth just stood there, staring me down. Before he could respond to me, we were interrupted

"Neither of you are going anywhere"

I looked down the hall and saw Courtney and Matt

"Great..." Seth and I sighed

Courtney and Matt threw out Ninetails and Poliwrath

"You've gotten in Maxie's way for too long" Courtney glared

"Archie's too! But not anymore!" Matt laughed

"I'm already sick of this. Shiftry, Razor Leaf! Mawile, Fairy Wind!" I shouted

The sharp leaves were wrapped in the wind, boosting their power

"Firespin" Courtney deadpanned

Ninetails launched a strong vortex of flames that roasted the leaves

"Dynamic Punch!" Matt yelled

Poliwrath rushed ahead with it's large glowing fist

"Crunch!" I countered

Mawile swung her horns around and caught the punch

I refused to give them a chance to react "Mawile, Feint Attack!"

Mawile vanished with Poliwrath and reappeared in the mid-air. Without missing a beat, Shiftry pelted Poliwrath with Razor Leaf. The Tadpole Pokemon was blown back. Ninetails pounced at my Pokemon was about to fire a Flamethrower but was sent flying by a Shadow Ball sent by Seth's Chandelure

"Hey! Get your own punching bags, I got dibs on these ones!" I growled

"You're welcome" Seth said nonchalantly and stepped in front of me "I'll handle of this, you get out of here"

I purposely nudged Seth out of my way "No... I'LL handle this, YOU get out of here!"

"I said I can take them" Seth glared

"And I said I can!" I countered

Courtney and Matt were just standing there

"Do you two need a minute?" Matt asked

"Shut up!" Seth and I yelled

"That Ninetails almost took you out. I'm trying to help you, just go!" Seth ordered

I refused "I had it under control! Besides, this is personal. You go!"

Mawile and Shiftry stood by me and glared at Seth as Chandelure defended it's Trainer

"Hydro Pump!"

"Hyper Beam"

Ninetails fired a massive laser and Poliwrath launched a powerful blast of water. Seth and I were too busy arguing, we didn't react in time. The entire section of the hideout we were in exploded

 _((I know I took forever to update the story. I just wanted to take some time to get all of the details hammered out. With what I have planned, it'll be worth it, you'll see. Next time, action, and lots of it. Questions, comments and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading, and Happy New Year!))_


	33. Infiltration: Part 3

_((Quick Recap: Malik finally reunited with the rest of his friends. After getting chased onto a bridge, Malik's Nuzleaf, Taylor Skitty and Tyler's Kirlia simultaneously evolved into Shiftry, Delcatty and Gallade. Unfortunately, Malik was once again separated from the twins alongside Seth, not long after sparking a rivalry with him. They were soon ambushed by Admins Courtney and Matt))_

* * *

 _ **A FEW MINUTES AGO**_

"Mawile, Flash Cannon! Shifrty, Dark Pulse!"

My Pokemon fired their attacks that collided with the enemy's, causing a massive explosion. I took off running and hollered for the others to follow. The twins unknowingly ran in the opposite direction Seth and I were heading. When they finally looked up, they realized we were nowhere to be seen

"Oh, come on!" Tyler groaned

"What are we gonna do?" Taylor asked

"Nothing"

Admins Tabitha and Shelly were standing at the end of the hallway with Torkoal and Walrein

"Dang" the twins sighed

Without any warning, the battle started

"Gallade, Magical Leaf!" Tyler shouted

Gallade flipped into the air and fired the glowing leaves at Walrein but a sudden Flamethrower stopped the attack

"Time and time again... you and... THAT KID... have been standing in our way! Keeping us from our goal!" Tabitha growled

"I refuse to be defeated by that boy AGAIN! And certainly not by his... sidekicks" Shelly glared

"Sidekicks?!" the twins gasped and growled

Out of nowhere, the building shook viciously

"What was that?! An explosion?!" Tyler worried

"Malik..." Taylor frowned

Back in my location, Seth and I were on the ground. Ninetails and Poliwrath launched a Hyper Beam-Hydro Pump combo that took out majority of the area we were in. It was a struggle, but I managed to pull myself off the ground. I looked up and saw Shiftry standing in front of all of us. Shiftry didn't stop the entire assault but he managed to absorb enough of the blast to keep us safe

"Shif..." Shiftry winced and fell to one of his knees

Seth stood up and saw that my Pokemon protected us "To block an attack like that"

Energy began to radiate from Shiftry's body but that last attack deal more harm than good

"We need time" I growled "Mawile!"

"Ma!" Mawile nodded

Mawile jumped over Shiftry and fired a Flash Cannon at Poliwrath. The Tadpole braced itself and took the attack. Ninetails finished recharging and went for Shiftry with Flamethrower. Shiftry managed to jumped out of the way at the last second but still didn't have enough strength to get back in the fight. I looked over and saw Seth carefully watching the battle

"Uhh... Whenever you're ready" I glared

"Now you want my help?" Seth questioned

"I need to buy some time for Shiftry. If that means tolerating you, so be it" I shrugged

Seth straight-faced me "You're just settled on giving me a hard time, aren't you?"

"It's what I do best" I grinned

Seth's Chandelure launched a Flamethrower that turned into light blue sparkling flames when boosted with Mawile's Fairy Wind. The attack pushed Poliwrath back, crashing into Ninetails

"Whoa" Seth mumbled

"That's called Fairy Inferno. Um... Ghost Edition" I smirked

Seth noticed Chandelure was looking somewhat tired so he called it back and took out two Pokeballs. Seth threw out two Pokemon I automatically recognized

"Mawile, Play Rough! Seviper, Poison Fang!" Seth called out

Seth's Mawile pelted Poliwrath with the Fairy-Type equivalent of Close Combat. Seviper dug it's toxic-soaked fangs into Ninetails and threw the fox aside. I noticed the worried faces of Matt and Courtney when their Pokemon were hurt but ignored it

"Shiftry!" I hollered

Shiftry nodded and started to form a ball of energy

"Everybody, move!" I warned

All of the Pokemon jumped out of the way just as Shiftry used Bide. Instead of targeting the enemy, Shiftry aimed along the ceiling between us to separate us

"Nice!" I smiled

My partner walked up to Seth's Mawile and stared her down. The two remained motionless for a couple moments before getting in each other's faces and snarling

"Mawile, cut it out" I sighed "Shiftry, how are you?"

"Shif... Shiftry..." Shiftry panted

I chuckled "You did a great job protecting us, buddy. Take a good rest"

I returned Shiftry to his Pokeball and pulled Mawile away from her new rival

"Shiftry's strong" Seth said

"Thanks. Your team's pretty tough too" I said honestly

The debris between us and the Admins began to rumble. Seth got ready for another fight

I grinned "Your Mawile's strong and all, but I bet even you two can't do this. Mawile!"

Mawile stood in front of me and we both closed our eyes

"What are you doing?" Seth glared

"Shhhhh" I shushed

The second Poliwrath smashed it's way to us, Mawile shot forward and sent the Tadpole flying back

"What?!" Seth gasped

"Ma...WILE!" Mawile shouted

Mawile began appearing and disappearing all over the place every millisecond

Seth was struggling to keep up "What's going on?"

Ninetails and Poliwrath couldn't do anything about my partner, causing them to become dizzy. Without warning, Mawile dropped in front of the enemy and unleashed a massive Flash Cannon. Ninetails and Poliwrath were engulfed in the bright laser and rendered them unconscious

 _ **MALIK & SETH VS. COURTNEY & MATT! WINNERS: MALIK & SETH!**_

Mawile growled at the Admins and made her way back to me. Courtney and Matt returned their Pokemon to their respective Pokeballs

"This isn't over" Courtney growled

"I know" I glared

The duo took off

Seth returned Seviper and looked at me "What... was that?"

"That, my _friend_ , was what happens when I transfer my Aura to Mawile" I explained

"Your... Aura?" Seth questioned and noticed I was panting and started to sweat "You okay?"

"It's cool, this happens. When I make Mawile stronger, I get weaker" I told him

I stood next to Mawile who was swinging at the air as her eye twitched

"Ma! Ma! Wile! Ma!" Mawile growled with each swing

I kneeled down and placed my hand on Mawile's shoulder "Come on, buddy. Let's get out of-"

In that moment, Mawile quickly bit my arm with her horns

"Ow!" I winced and fell back

That strike caused me to sever the connection between Mawile and myself. Mawile calmed down and saw me holding my arm

Mawile tilted her head to the side in confusion "Mawile?"

"What was that for?" I asked

"Ma?" Mawile moved my hand, seeing the bite marks "Mawile?!"

Mawile frowned at the realization that she hurt me and rubbed my injury

"It's okay, I'm fine. It's not your fault" I smiled

"Ma..." Mawile whimpered

Seth asked me if accidents like that happened a lot. I told him that this was the first. I explained that Mawile and I were still having trouble with the whole thing

"I see" Seth mumbled "Listen, if you're really focused on getting out of here, I won't get in your way. But, atleast help me out with one last thing. If we can't bring this place down, what I have planned should slow them down"

I stood up and looked at Seth "Oh yeah?"

Seth nodded "We just have to find my partner"

"Find?" I questioned

I assumed one of the Pokemon I had already seen was Seth's partner

"A Chikorita. I gave her a mission when we got here" Seth told me

"Ma?" Mawile mumbled and tugged at my shorts "Mawile! Mawile!"

"What is it?" I asked

Mawile pointed at Seth and made a face that resembled a different Pokemon

I scratched my head "I don't think this is the time for charades, Mawile"

Mawile pouted and continued her act. She made that specific face again, walked around on all fours, and raised her horns

"Uhh..." Seth and I were at a loss for words

Seth's Mawile laughed at mine for the performance she was putting on. Mawile dropped the act and started fighting with her rival

"For a second she almost looked like... Chikorita!" Seth gasped

Mawile pushed Seth's Pokemon away and nodded

"Mawile, do you know where Chikorita is right now?" I asked

Mawile thought about it for a moment and nodded

"Lead the way" Seth said

We all followed Mawile through the halls. Back with the twins, they were having trouble dealing with Tabitha and Shelly

"Delcatty, Double-Edge!" Taylor ordered

Delcatty charged and pushed Walrein back. The Ice Break Pokemon then fired an Ice Beam at point-blank range, dealing high damage to Delcatty. When Delcatty fell down, Walrein jumped into the air and went for a Body Slam but was blown off target by Gallade's Psycho Cut. Torkoal then used Eruption and Gallade was heavily injured by the molten blast. Tabitha continued the assault by having Torkoal use Gyro Ball. Delcatty defended Gallade by stopping Torkoal with Shadow Ball

"Minun, Helping Hand!"

"Plusle, Thunder Wave!"

Minun sent power to Plusle who managed to paralyze the enemy

"Now use Spark, full power!" both twins yelled

Plusle and Minun coated themselves in electricity and slammed into the enemy. Both Walrein and Torkoal were out cold

 _ **TYLER & TAYLOR VS. SHELLY AND TABITHA! WINNERS: TYLER & TAYLOR!**_

"Not again... NOT AGAIN!" Tabitha snarled

"This will not go unpunished!" Shelly glared "Tabitha!"

The two returned their Pokemon and ran away

"We won" Taylor smiled

Tyler nodded "Yeah"

Gallade and Delcatty were well pass their limits so the twins called them back

"I think we overstayed our welcome. How's 'bout we find the guys and get gone?" Tyler offered

"Sounds good" Taylor agreed

Deeper in the base, Mawile stopped when she wasn't sure which way to go

"Mawile..." Mawile mumbled

"Ma, Mawile" Seth's Mawile chuckled

My partner growled at the other Deceiver Pokemon before picking a direction

"Yo, you said you sent Chikorita on a mission. What was it?" I wondered

"I found out that Archie and Maxie are planning to use two ancient Pokemon with horrifying strength to reshape the world in their image" Seth stated

"Oh yeah, I think I remember hearing something about that before, but I ended up tuning them out. Continue" I said

"Well, I don't know their whole plan but I do know that there are special items that are crucial to their plans" Seth explained "I was gonna go get them myself but when I heard that they took some prisoners, I sent Chikorita ahead without me"

"What are these items anyway?" I asked

"Not really sure. I just had that _know it when I see it_ kind of vibe, you know?" Seth admitted

"Yeah, I can respect that" I shrugged

In the middle of our walk, the Pokemon felt the presence of someone approaching. Luckily, it was Seth's partner rounding the corner

"Chikorita" Seth smiled

"Chika!" Chikorita nuzzled Seth's leg

Seth kneeled down and rubbed Chikorita's head "Glad to see you're okay"

I looked at Seth. I thought that even though we were butting heads, he was a Trainer who cared for his Pokemon

"Did you find what we came here for?" Seth asked

"Chikori" Chikorita nodded

Chikorita led us to a lab where scientists were staring at two orbs with weird patterns on them. We snuck inside and kept out of sight of the enemy. I don't know what it was, but I couldn't keep my eyes off the orbs

"What are those things..?" I mumbled

"There goes the _know it when I see it_ vibe" Seth deadpanned

"More like a bell than a vibe" I added

We stayed hidden and watched the scientists have their conversation

"Well?"

"Both the Red Orb and Blue Orb are stabalized. I want to run a few more tests before the mission though"

Seth and I looked at each other and nodded. Mawile and Chikorita jumped into the air. When the leaf on Chikorita's head glowed white, she charged up a glowing dark green ball and fired it. Mawile used Fairy Wind to boost the power of the Energy Ball. The attack blew the scientists away and knocked them out

"Nice" I grinned "I think I'll call that... You know what, how 'bout you take this one?"

Seth looked confused "Huh?"

"Give that move a name. Come on, it's easy" I smiled

Seth sighed "I don't know... Fairy Wind-Energy Ball?"

I just stood there with a straight face "That was sad, man. Seriously, I wanna cry right now"

Seth and I stepped up to the orbs. I could almost feel the power radiating from them. I couldn't tell if it was something I should be fond of or afraid of

"These things... They can't stay here" I said

"Now we agree on something" Seth nodded

I reached forward and placed my hand on the Blue Orb. It vibrated and my eyes flickered red. Chikorita looked over and saw Mawile's eyes doing the same. Whatever happened only lasted a second but it felt like years

"Wow..." I whispered

"You alright?" Seth asked

"I... I... I..." I stuttered "I, uhh, think so. Just... Just wow"

Seth didn't like what just happened so he pulled out a cloth and wrapped the Red Orb in it, protecting himself from whatever happened to me

"Let's get moving" Seth said

We left the lab and searched for the twins. We were running through the halls but stopped when Seth noticed something

"Wait. Something's not right" he pointed out

"What?" I wondered

"Where is everybody?" Seth questioned

Seth was right. Other than the Admins and the scientists, we haven't seen any grunts since the bridge attack. I was trying to think but I couldn't come up with anything. Then, it hit me

"I know where they are" I smiled "If we're lucky, Taylor and Tyler will be there too. Come on!"

I led Seth back to the basement and my theory was confirmed. All the members of Teams Aqua and Magma had regathered to see their bosses off in their individual submarines. Seth and I stayed in the stairwell to remain hidden. After Maxie and Archie left, we dashed back upstairs and we ran into the twins

"Huh, guess we are lucky" Seth shrugged

"Are you guys okay?" Taylor worried

"Talk later. Escape now" I responded

Luckily thanks to majority of the enemy being in the basement at that time, we escaped the hideout without much issue. We didn't stick around and hurried to the Lilycove Pokemon Center. After checking into a room, we all nearly passed out

"Ugh! What a day!" Taylor groaned

"It's only been a day?!" I gasped

"Where do you think Maxie and Archie ran off to?" Tyler asked

"Who knows..." I sighed

"Who cares?" Seth added "They're not gonna get anything done without these"

Seth held up the Red Orb, sit wrapped in the cloth. I took out the Blue Orb and nonchalantly tossed it up and down with a grin

"What are those?" Taylor asked

"Not sure. But I'll rest easier knowing Maxie and Archie don't have them" Seth replied "Malik, maybe I should hang onto that for you"

"Seth, I'm alright" I said

Seth stared me down and nodded "Fine"

Tyler stood up "Now that we have a chance to catch our breath, there's something I gotta say. Malik, we have a problem"

"What?" I asked

Tyler took out the yellow folder he had and dumped out the papers on a desk

"What's all this?" Taylor wondered

"You" Tyler mumbled

I looked through the papers and I was shocked to see tons of my information. My name, my family, my Pokemon... They knew everything about me

"Where did you get all this?" I asked, stunned

"Their database" Tyler frowned "Apparently, they've been tracking us since Slateport"

"Slateport? That's where we met Maxie and Archie" Taylor remembered

There were no words I could think of to describe how I was feeling. I went wide-eyed when I came across something I was not expecting

"Guys... They know... About my Aura" I mumbled

The room got silent

"It doesn't matter. Malik, we turned two evil organizations on their heads today. Who cares what they know? It won't help them" Seth spoke

I smiled at Seth's words "You're right"

"I deleted your file from the computer after I printed this stuff" Tyler added

Seth rewrapped the Red Orb and put it away. He said he was gonna get back on the road. We told him to be safe, hoping to meet up with him again one day. He surprisingly wished us the same. Mawile saw Chikorita off with a smile. After Seth left, I gathered all of the papers and put them away

"You okay?" Taylor frowned

"I'm not sure... They've been watching us, Taylor. Probably still are. That's how they captured us" I replied

"We'll come out of this, Malik. It's us" Tyler smiled

I nodded. We all had a stressful day so we called it a day. When the twins fell asleep, Mawile and I stood on the balcony. She looked at the sky as I stared at the Blue Orb as it gave off a weird energy

"Mawile?" Mawile mumbled

"It's gonna be a fight. You ready for it?" I asked

Mawile grinned and nodded "Ma"

I kneeled down and fist-bumped my partner

* * *

 _((I hope you enjoyed this little arc. Next time, team building with your arch enemy. Questions, comments and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!))_

 _((Oh yeah, before I take off, I want to give everyone a heads up. I'm working a new project. It's Pokemon based with the characters you're already familiar with, including OCs. Malik and Mawile are gonna be in a whole new story. Think of it as like a different universe. Same people, different situations. I don't wanna give away too much about it just yet so bear with me))_


	34. Rivals

_Quick Recap: Aided by Seth, Malik, Taylor and Tyler escaped the Aqua-Magma hideout. After reaching safety, Tyler explained that Maxie and Archie have been watching them for some time and have been studying Malik very closely_

* * *

It had been two days since our terrible ordeal and we were still laying low at the Pokemon Center in Lilycove City, fearing that we were still being watched. Mawile and I were the only ones in the room and I had been repeatedly reading the files Tyler stole

"Those guys really did their homework, huh?" I asked

"Maaa..." Mawile yawned

I patted Mawile on the head "I'm sorry, Mawile. I know you're not use to staying put for so long. Just a little while longer, I promise"

"Ma" Mawile nodded

The twins entered the room and scolded me for still being the same spot they left me in. They insisted that I did anything I could to get my mind off it all. I said that the best way to keep a Trainer busy was a good battle. Tyler agreed and decided to take me on. We exited the Pokemon Center to the battle field out back

"Oh yeah, that reminds me" Tyler spoke "Malik, we found out that your next Gym battle is a double battle"

"Oh yeah? In that case, how 'bout a double battle right here to get me warmed up?" I grinned

"Sounds good" Tyler agreed and threw out Gallade and Seviper

"Mawile, let's rock" I said

"Wile" Mawile grinned and ran out on the field

"Manectric, let's get started!" I called out

"Tric!" Manectric howled

"Battle begin!" Taylor announced

"Mawile, Flash Cannon!" I instructed

"Gallade, Psycho Cut!" Tyler countered

The two attacks collided and created an explosion

"Manectric, Quick Attack!" I ordered

Manectric took off and full speed at Gallade who used used Magical Leaf towards the ground. The terrain was damage, ruining Manectric's path, forcing him to stop. Seviper lunged at Manectric and used Wring Out

"Manectric..!" Manectric growled

"Discharge!"

Manectric unleashed his electricity and injured Seviper

"Crunch!"

Mawile put Seviper in a tight grip with her horns and threw the snake away. Gallade jumped into the air and fired a Shadow Ball. My Pokemon evaded the assault. Seviper tried to use Poison Tail on Manectric but Mawile caught it

"Mawile, Fairy Wind!" I hollered

Mawile spun with Seviper and sent him flying into Gallade. Taylor cheered at the battle with Plusle and Minun, not noticing one of her Pokeballs wiggling. Out of nowhere, Zangoose came out of his ball and stood in the middle of the field. Seviper glared at his enemy who snarled back

"Uh-oh..." Tyler and Taylor gulped

To no one's surprise, the two began fighting

"Zangoose, stop!" Taylor begged

"Seviper, cut it out!" Tyler yelled

"Here we go again" I sighed "Manectric, break those two up! Quick Attack!"

Manectric dashed in between Zangoose and Seviper, sending them both flying. The two growled at my Pokemon. Suddenly, Manectric was hammered by a Poison Tail-Crush Claw combo

"Manectric!" I gasped "Did they just..."

Before Zangoose and Seviper could continue their battle, Mawile jumped in between them and unleashed Fairy Wind to keep them apart. The twins jumped in and restrained their individual Pokemon

"This is a serious problem" Taylor frowned

"We can't look pass this. Something has to be done" Tyler concluded

"Maybe... Maybe not" I spoke

"What?" the twins questioned

"Did you see how they attacked Manectric? It was awesome!" I grinned

"Tric!" Manectric growled

"Don't be a baby. I don't mean THAT you got attacked, I mean how. The second they put their sights on a common enemy, they forgot to fight each other" I explained "And that combo? Fast and effective. Those two actually make a pretty good team"

"I don't know, Malik" Taylor replied

"How 'bout another battle? Mawile and Manectric against Zangoose and Seviper" I suggested

The twins looked at each other for a moment. They eventually agreed and we took our places on the field. Whenever the two would look like they were about to fight their Trainer would scold them

"I hope you're right about this, dude" Tyler sighed

"Don't be silly. I'm always right" I smirked

I began the battle by having Manectric use Quick Attack on Zangoose. Mawile continued the assault by using Crunch on Seviper. The two were thrown back from our attacks

"Seviper, Poison Tail on Manectric!" Tyler ordered

Seviper took a moment to consider attacking Zangoose, but ended swinging his glowing tail at the hound. Since Seviper took too long to make a decision, Mawile was able to jump in front of Manectric and catch the strike

"Shadow Claw!" Taylor shouted

Zangoose rushed ahead with his claws engulfed in darkness. Mawile and I saw that Zangoose was possibly about to attack Seviper so my partner used Fairy Wind to whip Seviper around and knock Zangoose back then threw Seviper to the side. Zangoose and Seviper stood up and glared at my team. Manectric just stood there, clearly uninterested in something that didn't provide him a challenge

"Nectric" Manectric blew them off

"Mawile. Mawile" Mawile grinned and waved them over

The two growled and were clearly conflicted to fight each other or my Pokemon

"Seviper!" Tyler yelled

"Zangoose!" Taylor called out

Seviper and Zangoose looked back at their Trainers

"Come on! You're gonna let them get the best of you like that?" Tyler scolded

"You have to focus! Malik was right, if you both put you sights on a common enemy, you work really good together" Taylor continued

"Think of it like this" I spoke

Everyone looked in my direction

I crossed my arms "If anyone's gonna beat one of you, it might as well be the other, right? You two may not be friends, but you don't have to be enemies. Like it or not, you're family now! You're rivals!"

As I spoke, I thought of Brianna, Kyle, Seth, and a woman with blonde hair. All of them were people I thought of as amazing Trainers, obstacles I had to conquer to reach my goal. I used the emotion I was feeling to fuel my speech and let them know that there's a way to challenge each other and not be enemies

"Now..." I punched my palm "Come at us for real!"

"Poison Tail!"

"Crush Claw!"

Without hesitation, the two shot forward at my Pokemon. Mawile and Manectric jumped in opposite directions to dodge. Zangoose went for Mawile while Seviper chased Manectric

"Shadow Claw, back-to-back!" Taylor instructed

"Zan!" Zangoose growled and swung his claws rapidly

Mawile evaded the best she could then used Feint Attack to get away. When Mawile reappeared Zangoose went after her

"Seviper, Night Slash!" Tyler hollered

Seviper swung his tail at Manectric who was just barely able to dodge. Accepting he finally had a challenge, Manectric began to get serious. Manectric nailed the serpant with Quick Attack and followed up with Thunder Fang. Seviper intentionally got bit on the tail so he could throw Manectric. Zangoose caught up to Mawile and used Shadow Claw. Both Mawile and Manectric were sent flying and slammed into each other

"Whoa!" I gasped

"I don't believe it..." Taylor mumbled

"Those two... They're actually attacking in unison" Tyler smiled

Zangoose and Seviper got back on the offensive but were quickly cut off

I clapped my hands "Hey, hey, hey!"

All of the Pokemon stopped and looked at me

"I think we've all learned something today" I smiled

Everyone just looked at me

I sighed "Come on, it's just like the story. Zangoose and Seviper hated each other until they realized they had a common enemy. Then they put their differences aside to defeat the threat. After that, they learned they weren't so different from each other"

The twins and I looked at Zangoose and Seviper. They just glared at each other. Thinking they were about start a fight, we all got ready to break it up. The two just ended up brushing each other off and going to their Trainers

"You guys... don't wanna fight?" Taylor questioned

The two ignored each other

"Got it. Take a good rest" Tyler smiled and called Seviper back to his ball

Taylor did the same with Zangoose and the twins looked at me

"What?" I questioned

Tyler grinned and shook his head "You're something else, you know that?"

"Of course I do, where have you been?" I smirked and sat against a tree

I thanked my Pokemon for helping me and told them that it was good experience for our upcoming Gym battle

* * *

 _It's time for the final stretches of the story. These last couple Gym battles, taking care of Maxie and Archie, the ancient Pokemon, and finally the Hoenn League. Trust me, I've got surprises for all of 'em! Next time, emotions, and lots of it! Seriously, have some tissues ready, you've been warned. Questions, comments, and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!_


	35. Useless

_Quick Recap: Malik helped the twins try to change Seviper and Zangoose's relationship with each other. Despite their DNA, the two managed to actually work together during a double battle_

* * *

The sun had just risen. We had just decided to get back on the road but I wanted to get in a couple hours of training to make up for the days we haven't been doing anything. After breakfast my team and I backtracked to Route 121 where Vigoroth, Vibrava, Manectric and Mismagius were off to the side as Mawile and Shiftry attacked each other

"Mawile, Crunch!" I called out

"Wile!" Mawile jumped up and swung her horns around

"Let's put this new move to the test" I grinned "Shiftry, Leaf Blade!"

"Shiftry!" Shiftry lunged into the air as the leaves on his arms glowed bright green

Shiftry's swing deflected Mawile's attack. The two landed and waited for me to call out the next instruction

"Alright, Flash Cannon! Dark Pulse!" I hollered

The two charged up their respective bright and dark energies before firing. The collision of attacks shook the forest. Not far from where we were, a boy looked in our direction when he heard the boom. Back in my location, I coughed and and fanned my hands as the smoked cleared

"Okay..." I coughed "Next time, gotta remember to back up some"

My Pokemon laughed at me

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up" I smirked "I'm proud of you guys. You've all been improving lately. I'm glad that whole thing with Maxie and Archie didn't hold you back"

After a short while, we stopped. Mawile stretched her limps and went to a nearby river to get a drink

"Good job, guys. I say we're ready for the next Gym. Now Tyler said it'll be a double battle, so who to use..." I mumbled as I went over many team-ups in my head

"Hey!" a voice hollered

I looked over and saw someone walking up to me. It was a young man about my age. He had slicked back light brown hair, was wearing a blue collared shirt, black jacket, black dress pants and dark brown boots

"Uhh... hi" I waved

"That bang a little while ago. Was that you?" he asked me

I nodded "Yeah? Is there a problem?"

"No problem. That blast was pretty powerful. I was just hoping for a battle" he explained

I smiled "Oh. No problem. Can we wait a second though? My partner will be right back"

"Sure" he shrugged

"I'm Malik by the way" I greeted

"Julian" he deadpanned

Mawile made her way back and saw me talking "Ma?"

"There you are. Come on, time for a battle!" I grinned

Mawile quickly ran over to me with a wicked smile, ready for a fight but when she looked at our opponent, she froze

"Ready, partner?" I asked without getting a response "Mawile?"

I looked down and saw Mawile staring at Julian with wide eyes. I noticed she was trembling slightly

I kneeled down and placed my hand on her head "Mawile? What's the matter?"

"What's wrong with your Mawile?" Julian asked

"I don't know" I frowned

Mawile began to growl and suddenly lunged at Julian "Wile!"

I quickly grabbed her when she jumped and held her as she tried to escape my grip "Mawile, what are you doing?!"

"Wile! Mawile!" Mawile growled

Julian stood there with his hands in his pockets and carefully looked at Mawile "Wait a minute..."

"Julian, I'm sorry. I don't know what's gotten into her!" I panicked

Julian stepped forward "I know you"

"Huh?" I gasped

"Yeah. You're _that_ Mawile, aren't you?" Julian asked

" _That_ Mawile?" I questioned

Mawile gripped my arm and snarled "Ma..."

I stood straight up with Mawile in my arms "Julian... do you know my Mawile?"

"Yeah. I use to be this Mawile's Trainer" Julian said

"Huh...?" I mumbled

 _ **A COUPLE MONTHS AGO**_

Julian was walking through the cave with a flashlight. He walked for some time before deciding to leave. Halfway back to the exit, Julian saw a Mawile running along a ledge from an Onix. Mawile quickly ducked behind a stalagmite and hid there. Onix lost sight of it's target and looked for Mawile. When Onix got close to the edge, Mawile got up and used Fairy Wind. Onix roared as it was hit in the face and fell over the edge. After the impact, Onix groaned and burrowed away. Mawile looked over the edge and grinned at the hole Onix made

"Mawile! Ma!" Mawile laughed

Mawile turned around to leave but Julian blocked her path

"Mawile" Mawile glared

"I saw what you did. Something like that needs sneakiness... and intelligence. I could use that. You should come with me" Julian offered

Mawile tilted her head "Ma?"

Julian persuaded Mawile to join with the promise of challenging battles. Mawile agreed and joined his team. Some time later, Julian faced off against another Trainer and his Breloom and he used Mawile for the first time. Julian had a foolproof plan on how to deal with the situation but as the battle started, Mawile disobeyed all of Julian's orders. Despite that, they still managed to win. At first, Julian ignored Mawile's actions, still seeing use for her but eventually he grew angry. After a few more battles, Mawile still refused to listen and Julian got to his breaking point. One day, Julian returned to Granite Cave and let Mawile out of her Pokeball

"I tried to work with you but you constantly challenge me" Julian glared

Mawile rolled her eyes "Wile"

"I blame myself for this. I was the one who thought this pathetic excuse for a Pokemon could be useful" Julian concluded

"Ma..?" Mawile gasped to herself

Julian dropped the Pokeball near Mawile and stomped it into pieces. Mawile stared at the broken ball as Julian walked away

 _ **PRESENT**_

i stood there trying to process the story "Wait... So you just abandoned her?!"

"She didn't listen to my commands. What else was I supposed to do?" Julian deadpanned

I glared at Julian "Work with her! Mawile likes to battle a certain way! All Pokemon do! If you just paid attention you'd see that! Calling her a pathetic... How dare you?"

Julian stared me down "When a Pokemon is captured, it doesn't matter how they'd _like_ to battle. They're supposed to follows orders. If they can't, what're they good for?"

"I'll show you" I growled

"I'm sorry?" Julian questioned

I set Mawile down and punched my palm "I'll show you what it means to actually work WITH your Pokemon. You wanted a battle, right? Let's go"

"Mawile!" Mawile nodded

Julian smirked with a straight face "Gladly"

Julian and I each stood on one side of the field and I got myself mentally ready. My Pokemon stood to the side. I kneeled down and rubbed Mawile's head

"You ready for this? Like I don't already know the answer" I said

Mawile looked at me with determination and nodded "Wile"

Mawile ran out onto and field and glared at Julian. He took out a Pokeball and threw it. A large dinosaur-like Pokemon came into view

"RON!" the creature roared

I took out my Pokedex

 **"Aggron, the Iron Body. It claims an entire mountain as its own. The more wounds it has, the more it has battled"**

"Since the last Steel-type I had was a bust, I returned to Granite Cave to get a better one" Julian explained

"Are we gonna talk or battle?" I glared

"Battle, of course. You can have the first move" Julian offered

"You asked for it" I grinned "Crunch!"

Mawile shot forward without hesitation. Aggron turned and rose his tail. Mawile's jaws clamped onto Aggron's tail

"Iron Tail" Julian deadpanned

Aggron rose his tail up more as it glowed brightly

I gasped "Mawile, Feint Attack to dodge!"

As Aggron dropped his tail, the ground split open. Mawile appeared in front of me

"Good job" I smiled "Now, Flash Cannon, let's go!"

Mawile fired her laser and collided with Aggron. The dinosaur was pushed back a little then broke through the attack

"Let me show you how that move is supposed to look" Julian spoke "Flash Cannon, now"

Aggron charged up a white ball and fired. Mawile braced herself but was engulfed by light. An explosion followed soon after

"Ma!" Mawile cried as she was sent flying

I gasped "Mawile!"

Back at our campsite, everyone froze after the ground shook for a moment

"What was that?!" Taylor gasped

Tyler looked out and saw an enormous dustcloud in the distance "Look!"

"Isn't that the direction Malik went?" Taylor worried

"I think so" Tyler nodded

"Malik..." Taylor frowned

When the dust cleared, I saw Mawile on the ground

"Mawile! Are you okay?!" I called out

"Ma... Mawile..." Mawile winced as she stood back up

"Giving up already?" Julian asked

"No way! Mawile, Fairy Wind!" I hollered

"Protect" Julian commanded

Aggron quickly threw up a forcefield to guard himself from the wind

I growled in frustration "Come on..!"

I had Mawile use Fairy Wind again, but this time to whip up some dust. She followed up by getting close with Feint Attack and using Crunch. Aggron saw Mawile coming and purposely took the Crunch in the arm just to throw Mawile onto the ground. Without missing a beat, Aggron used Flash Cannon. Mawile was blasted at close range. After the attack, Mawile was lying down in a deep, smoking ditch, barely moving

"Ma...wile..." Mawile whimpered

"I'm sure you've noticed by now" Julian spoke

"Noticed what?" I glared

Julian gestured at the Pokemon "The difference between our Pokemon. Aggron is standing there virtually without a scratch, where Mawile..."

I got a good look at Mawile. She managed to get back up but couldn't quite catch her breath

"What's pathetic before will be pathetic after. At least with Pokemon" Julian said

"Why you..!" I growled

"Mawile..!" Mawile half-hollered

Mawile was looking at me over her shoulder. I could tell she wanted me to stay focused. I took a deep breath and slapped my face with both hands

I smiled at my partner "You're right. Sorry"

Mawile smiled back and nodded. She turned back and stared down our opponents

"Ma...WILE!" Mawile shouted as a huge gust of sparkling wind blasted up from under her

Julian brushed off the breeze and fixed his hair "Cute. But it won't do any good"

"We'll see. We're just getting started!" I grinned

"Ma!" Mawile nodded

"Use Crunch!" I instructed

A dark twinkle went off in Mawile's eye and she shot forward. Julian and Aggron stood there

"This was interesting, but it's over" Julian mumbled "Aggron, Head Smash"

Aggron was engulfed by a dark gold-ish energy and flew at Mawile. Mawile swung her horns to deliver her attack but Aggon broke through them and smashed into Mawile. Aggron continued to go ahead with Mawile stuck to the front of the charge. Aggron flew past me and blew Mawile into a giant rock that exploded on impact

"MAWILE!" I cried

When the smoke cleared Aggron was standing infront of a huge pile of smoldering rocks. My Pokemon and I quickly rushed over

"Mawile?! Mawile! Say something!" I pleaded "Vibrava, Dig!"

Vibrava dug a hole on the side of the pile and blew through the rubble, holding Mawile. I fell to my knees and Vibrava placed Mawile in my arms. She was old cold

"Mawile..." I mumbled and teared up

Julian walked up "Told you"

My Pokemon growled and went forward

"Stop" I spoke

My Pokemon stopped moving but didn't take their eyes off Julian and Aggron

"Malik, you should take this as a learning experience" Julian said

I glared over my shoulder "What?"

"You won't go anywhere if you weigh yourself down with the weak" Julian stated

"Shut up..." I growled

Julian continued "There are plenty of other Pokemon, Mawiles even, that can do better than-"

"Shut up!" I shouted

Julian stopped talking. My sudden loud voice caused Mawile to open her eyes a little

"You're wrong! Mawile's not pathetic! I don't know what you saw back then, but know this... not seeing Mawile's true potential and letting her go was the biggest mistake you've ever made" I told him

"I saw potential" Julian replied

I shook my head "Not her true potential"

Julian sighed and returned Aggron to his Pokeballf "Whatever you say"

Julian turned around and started to walk away

"This isn't over, Julian! Next time I see you I expect a rematch! And when I win, I want you to take it all back! Do you hear me?!" I yelled and then panted

Julian rolled his eyes and shrugged "Sure, whatever. But let me ask you something, just out of curiousity... If you choose to stick with Mawile, how far do you think you'll go, honestly?"

I caught my breath and stood up straight "To the top"

Julian looked at me for a moment then proceeded to walk off "Good luck with that. You'll need as much as you can get. At the end of the day... that Mawile is useless"

Julian left the area, leaving me to process everything that just happened. I looked down and saw Mawile looking back at me

"Mawile!" I gasped and smiled

Mawile smiled slightly "Ma..."

"We'll see him again... It'll be different next time..." I swore

Mawile teared up and nodded "Mawile..."

Mawile passed out right after that. I returned the rest of my team and started making my way back to the camp as fast as I could. I ran into the twins halfway back and before they even had a chance to ask what happened I told them that we had to get to the Lilycove Pokemon Center immediately

* * *

 _Well... that was something. Granted it was a couple months ago, I did tell you that there was gonna be emotions this chapter. And as long as we're on that subject, I gotta apologize to everyone for taking forever to update the story. My plate has been full for months. Either that or I was starting off a new chapter and didn't like how it was progessing or got pulled away from it. When either of those happened, by the time I got back, I had lost the muse. But on the lighter side, that full plate I refered to is way emptier now so more updates to this story and the others will definitely be easier to do. Now that I'm officially back, there's a few things I wanna ask you guys. First, what do you think of Mawile having a another Trainer before Malik? Second, do you guys believe that a Pokemon that just refuses to follow orders should be released? Third, what do you think Malik and Mawile should do to overcome this? And just a bonus question... If you remember from the beginning of the story, Malik was actually about to choose one of the official starter Pokemon until Mawile showed up. Now my question for you is, if Mawile hadn't come back, who do you think Malik would've chosen? Mudkip? Treeko? Torchic? Share your thoughts. As always, questions, comments and concerns are expected and accepted. Thanks for reading!_


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